According to the results of the searches of the places of sale, the detectives of the Territorial Department of the ESBU in the city of Kyiv and the Kyiv region seized more than 13 thousand tobacco products without excise stamps and with excise tax stamps with signs of forgery, 365 electronic cigarettes and tobacco mixtures for hookah. The total estimated market value of counterfeit tobacco products is more than UAH 2.1 million.

As part of the pre-trial investigation ESBU detectives exposed a group of persons who were carrying out illegal storage, movement and sale of excise tobacco products, tobacco mixtures for hookah in the territory of Kyiv region. A group of people sold counterfeit products, including illegally imported Russian-made tobacco products, through specially created websites and retail outlets.

Currently the detectives are establishing the addresses of the production of the mentioned tobacco products the means of transportation other places of sale and are establishing the full range of persons involved in the organisation of criminal activities for the manufacture and sale of excise goods. Measures are also being taken to block websites.

Pre-trial investigation in criminal proceedings on grounds of offences provided for in Part 3 of Art. 204 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal manufacture, storage, sale or transportation for the purpose of sale of excise goods) is carried out by detectives of Territorial Administration of ESBU in the city of Kyiv and Kyiv region under the procedural guidance of prosecutors of the Kyiv Regional Prosecutor's Office and the operational support of the main department for countering systemic threats to state management of the Department of Defense national statehood of the SBU.

We will remind you that recently the detectives of the Territorial Department of the ESBU in the city of Kyiv and the Kyiv region stopped criminal activities of a group of people who organised an underground network for the sale of counterfeit tobacco products. More than 45,000 packs of cigarettes with an estimated value of almost UAH 3.4 million were seized from circulation.