The facts came to light on November 12, 2024 during an inspection in the port of Zeebrugge. With the help of a scanner, customs discovered no fewer than 11.2 million illegal cigarettes in the trailer of a truck. These were cigarettes from the brands Richmond and L&B.
Forged bill of lading
Following the discovery, the Romanian driver of the truck was arrested. Gheorghe R. stated that he was recruited via the internet to collect the trailer in question. The consignment note clearly turned out to be forged, because officially the defendant was on the road with a load of cardboard. The Romanian transport company involved and manager Florin C. therefore also had to answer before the Bruges criminal court.
Tobacco smell
The customs counsel emphasized that the driver should have known the contents of his trailer. “A professional driver should have noticed that something was wrong based on the weight and the tobacco smell,” said master Peter Naert. R. and C. were sentenced to four months to five years in prison. The defendants also faced a fine of 21 to 42 million euros. The transport company even risked a fine of up to 84 million euros. Customs also demanded payment of 4.2 million euros in evaded excise duties.
Sealed
The defense successfully requested the acquittal for Gheorghe R., who was the only one who did not fail to appear. Master Julien Wydoodt noticed that his client’s cargo was sealed. “The bill of lading appeared authentic, so he had no objective reason to suspect it was tobacco,” it said.
The judge sentenced Florin C. in absentia to four months’ suspended prison sentence and a fine of 21,214,816 euros, of which 20 million euros was suspended. The transport company was imposed the same fine.