{"id":206706,"date":"2026-10-08T18:44:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T15:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206706\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T18:44:14","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T15:44:14","slug":"lithuania-arrests-three-suspects-in-cigarette-smuggling-from-belarus","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206706\/","title":{"rendered":"Lithuania arrests three suspects in cigarette smuggling from Belarus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

October 8, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Lithuanian border guards have arrested three Lithuanian residents over suspected involvement in cigarette smuggling from Belarus, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The arrests took place this morning as officers tried to stop two cars leaving a garage complex in Vilnius. One driver reportedly ignored the order to stop and attempted to flee, damaging a border guard vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While stopping the speeding SUV, the ambushed border guard used a gas-charged weapon. Law enforcers stopped the suspect, a 25-year-old Vilnius resident, in the courtyard of an apartment building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 38-year-old man from the \u0160al\u010dininkai District, driving the other car, was also arrested near the garages, where border guards later found about 36,000 packs of cigarettes with Belarusian excise stamps. The remains of a weather balloon found at the scene suggest that the illegally imported cigarettes from Belarus were delivered by air, the border authorities said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The third suspect, another man from the \u0160al\u010dininkai district, was arrested later. All three may face up to eight years in prison if convicted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tensions between Belarus and Lithuania over cigarette-smuggling by air started rising last October, forcing Lithuanian authorities to close the border and suspend operations at Vilnius International Airport, located close to the Belarusian border, over the incursions of smugglers\u2019 balloons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cigarettes cost the equivalent of about \u20ac1 per pack in Belarus and are significantly cheaper than legally sold cigarettes in Lithuania, where prices start at around \u20ac5. Smuggled NZ-brand cigarettes can be purchased in Vilnius for about \u20ac2 per pack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius declared an \u201cextreme situation,\u201d a low-level emergency in late 2025 in response to what it called \u201ca hybrid attack from Belarus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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