71 Thousand Pieces of E-Cigarette Tobacco Seized at Sarp Customs Gate

In two operations carried out by the Customs Enforcement Teams of the Ministry of Commerce at the Sarp Customs Gate, a total of 7 thousand electronic cigarette tobacco worth 700 million 71 thousand lira was seized.

As a result of the risk analysis studies conducted within the scope of anti-smuggling activities, two trucks entering the Sarp Customs Gate from Georgia at different times were considered risky. Suspicious density was detected in the trailer of the trucks that were shipped to the X-ray scanning device. Trucks taken to the search hangar were also searched by the tea-tobacco detector dog. When the detector dog reacted to the floor of the trucks with suspicious density on the X-Ray scanning device, the searches were intensified in these sections. As a result of the searches, it was determined that secret compartments were created at the bottom of the truck trailers and tens of thousands of electronic cigarette tobacco were hidden by means of specially prepared devices in these compartments.

In 7 separate secret compartments created in the first truck, 40 thousand electronic cigarette tobacco, connected to special belt-mounted devices, were seized.

The second truck, were taken from the Common Door Georgia and made the program being used by the protocol signed between Turkey and the follow-up questioning bulunarak risk as a result of intelligence work. When the suspect truck arrived at the customs gate, it was checked using similar methods and it was found that secret compartments were created in this truck with the same special mechanism as the first truck. In these secret compartments, 31 thousand electronic cigarette tobacco were seized.

It was determined that the customs value of a total of 71 thousand electronic cigarette tobacco captured as a result of two successful operations in which Sarp Customs Protection, Smuggling and Intelligence Directorate personnel were carried out one day apart, was approximately 7 million 700 thousand liras.

The investigation into the events is continuing before the Hopa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.