The State Control Committee has uncovered a scheme involving counterfeit mineral fertilisers.
According to the State Control Committee, a group led by a Minsk resident organised the purchase in Russia of 154 tonnes of a “low-quality nutrient substance”. The product was passed off as a well-known brand of nitrogen-phosphorus fertiliser.
The counterfeit goods were put up for exchange trading. They were sold to agricultural enterprises in the Minsk and Hrodna regions, which made full prepayments. Some farms reportedly purchased the fertilisers using loans.
Fake quality certificates were used to deceive the farms. The fraudsters allegedly counted on the high pace of the sowing campaign. Test results showed that the fertilisers offered contained virtually no phosphorus. Its content was 110 times below the norm.
“The counterfeit products acquired in this way were applied to the soil by farms without any preliminary quality checks. At the same time, officials at one of the agricultural organisations continued using the fertilisers even after receiving information that they were counterfeit”, the State Control Committee said.
The damage has been estimated at 380,000 Belarusian roubles. A criminal case has been opened on charges of fraud on an especially large scale. The organiser of the scheme has admitted guilt and is cooperating with investigators. Measures are being taken to compensate for the damage.
