Lithuanian Customs Seize Two Audi Cars Used to Smuggle Cigarettes
Reform.news Editorial Team · 21 October 2026, 10:11
https://reform.news/en/lithuanian-customs-seize-two-audi-cars-used-to-smuggle-cigarettes/Lithuanian customs officers at the Medininkai border crossing with Belarus thwarted two attempts to smuggle cigarettes.
On October 16, customs officers discovered 1,744 packs of Minsk Capital cigarettes worth more than €9,000 in a hidden compartment beneath an Audi Q5. During questioning, the driver, a Belarusian citizen, admitted that he was transporting the cigarettes to Lithuania and intended to sell them on the market. An investigation has been launched, the car has been seized, and a court ordered the man to be detained for one month.
On October 18, a Lithuanian citizen was caught smuggling cigarettes. He was entering the country in an Audi e-tron registered in Belarus. A storage compartment for charging cables contained 340 packs of Minsk Capital and NZ Gold cigarettes worth €1,873.
The cigarettes and the car were seized. The driver received an administrative offense report for the illegal transportation of goods and violation of international sanctions. Since July 2024, vehicles with Belarusian registration plates have been banned from entering Lithuania.
