In Spain, gang that employs Ukrainian refugees to produce illegal cigarettes is busted

BBC reported that, in Spain, the police cracked down on a gang producing illegal cigarettes in three factories. The police announced that the gang employed Ukrainian asylum seekers in poor conditions in factories.

More than 20 houses, facilities and shops were searched in the operation carried out in three different regions of Spain; 27 people were detained.

In the operation carried out with the help of the European Police Organization (Europol), with tobacco products with a market value of 37.5 million euros (approximately 770 million TL); A large number of luxury vehicles, jewelry and cash were also seized.

The gang, whose chiefs live a very luxurious life, allegedly smuggled large amounts of tobacco into the country and produced fake cigarettes in their factories.

It has been determined that more than 500 thousand packs of cigarettes can be produced per day in the factories in Seville, Valencia and La Rioja, and cigarettes are sold inside and outside Spain.

It was also announced that the gang turned to cannabis production.

The police announced that the Ukrainians who fled their country after the invasion of Russia, which started on February 24, 2022, live in crowded prefabricated shelters in factories.

It was stated that Ukrainians, some of whom had smuggled into Spain, worked long hours every day and did not leave the factories for fear of being caught.

According to the data of the United Nations, approximately 8 million Ukrainian refugees still live in European countries.