Lithuanian Border Guards Retrieve Two Smugglers’ Rafts From the Neman and Viliya Rivers

Smugglers continue to use waterways to transport cigarettes from Belarus to Lithuania. This method is usually especially popular in winter, when rafts carrying cigarettes are disguised as ice floes.

As the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service reported, one of the rafts was retrieved from the Viliya River near the village of Moliai. The illegal “vessel” was carrying 480 packs of Minsk Capital QS cigarettes with Belarusian excise stamps.

Another raft was recovered from the Neman River near Druskininkai. It was carrying 2,736 packs of NZ Gold and Fest cigarettes. Both rafts were equipped with GPS trackers.

Pre-trial investigations have been launched into the smuggling cases.