Authorities seized two business-class Mercedes from an elderly couple in Transcarpathia for smuggling cigarettes.

On Tuesday, January 21, border guards from the Chop detachment discovered 700 packs of cigarettes hidden in the compartments of two Mercedes vehicles, which were being driven by retirees from the Uzhhorod district to the EU. The tobacco and vehicles were seized.

According to reports from the Western Regional Office of the State Border Guard Service, the couple was heading to Slovakia through the "Uzhhorod" border crossing using two Mercedes cars. Their colleagues from the operational search unit had previously informed the border guards about a possible attempt by the man and woman to illegally transport cigarettes.

During the inspection of the man's vehicle, a service dog trained to detect tobacco alerted.

"In the specified location, law enforcement officers, using special technical means, found several hiding places equipped in the thresholds of the vehicle. From these, they retrieved 354 packs of tobacco products of various brands. In the car driven by the woman, similar hiding places were discovered. An additional 350 packs of cigarettes were found in these compartments," the State Border Guard Service reported.

The Transcarpathian customs officials added that a protocol was drawn up against the smugglers under part 1 of Article 483 of the Customs Code of Ukraine. The sanctions of this article provide for a fine ranging from 50% to 100% of the value of the contraband items, along with their confiscation, including the vehicles.

"The estimated total value of the seized cigarettes exceeds 45,000 UAH, while the two Mercedes E-class cars are valued at 27,000 dollars," the customs officials noted.

Due to the fact that part of the cigarettes lacked excise stamps, the retirees face criminal liability.