Prague - In a recent massive crackdown on illegal cigarette dealers, Czech police arrested a gang of people suspected of the production and sale of counterfeit cigarettes.
Seven of them were charged and detained. Head of anticorruption police Milan Král told journalists on Monday.
The perpetrators, all of whom are Vietnamese, stand accused of tax evasion of CZK 150 million. If proven guilty, they face imprisonment of 5 - 12 years.
"The police seized 9.5 million cigarettes, 15 tones of tobacco, a production line, more than 1 ton of wrapping material, computers, 7 cars, cash worth CZK 3 million and several thousand of cigarette stamps," said anticorruption police spokesperson Roman Skřepek.
The production line is believed to make 2,500 cigarettes per minute, according to the police.
The organized gang imported tobacco leaves from China and Vietnam and cigarette filters from Bulgaria and Austria.
The gang faked cigarettes of the Marlboro, Camel and Lucky Strike companies. The tobacco they used was the same for all types, only the price differed.
