21 people arrested/ Cigarette smuggling network busted, using weather balloons from Belarus

2025-12-16 20:03:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

21 people arrested/ Cigarette smuggling network busted, using weather balloons

Tuesday's operation involved more than 140 officers from the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau, Vilnius police and special anti-terrorism units.

Authorities in Lithuania said on Tuesday they had arrested 21 people suspected of links to a criminal network smuggling cigarettes using specially equipped weather balloons from Russia's ally Belarus, which have violated the Baltic country's airspace in recent weeks.

Investigators conducted more than 80 checks, seizing cigarettes with Belarusian excise stamps, SIM cards, communication and tracking signal jammers, and firearms, the Lithuanian prosecutor general's office said in a statement.

Luxury cars and valuable assets were also confiscated.

Tuesday's operation involved more than 140 officers from the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau, Vilnius police and special anti-terrorism units.

The prosecutor's office said in a statement that the suspected network "was characterized by a conspiracy and a very strict distribution of roles, the smuggling of cigarettes was carried out systematically, in a coordinated manner, under the strict control of its organizers (leaders) and their administrators."

Prosecutors allege that "the organizers may have had direct contact with accomplices operating in the Republic of Belarus, from where, under favorable weather conditions, balloons with smuggled cigarettes were launched."

"Using tracking devices (GPS) and appropriate software, the movement of the balloons was monitored and the exact coordinates of their landing in Lithuania were transmitted to the executors," prosecutors said.

"After collecting the smuggled goods, the latter were to deliver it to predetermined points or hand it over to other persons involved in the crimes."

Lithuanian authorities said the 21 suspects will face charges of participation in a criminal organization, illegal handling and smuggling of excise goods, and aiding another state in action against Lithuania.

Earlier this month, Lithuania declared a national state of emergency due to security risks posed by weather balloons sent from Belarus.

The balloons forced Lithuania to repeatedly close its main airport in the capital Vilnius, leaving thousands of people stranded and leading to the temporary closure of two land border crossings with Belarus.

Belarus' President, Alexander Lukashenko, called the border closure a "crazy hoax" and part of a "hybrid war" against his country.

Europe as a whole is now on high alert after drone flights in NATO airspace reached an unprecedented level in September, prompting European leaders to agree to develop a "drone wall" along their borders to better detect, track and intercept drones that violate Europe's airspace.

In November, NATO military officials said a new American anti-drone system had been deployed on the alliance's eastern flank.

And after a violation of Polish airspace, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the formation of the Eastern Sentry program, which aims to deter further Russian interference.

Some European officials described the incidents as a test of NATO's response to Moscow, which raised questions about how prepared the alliance is against potential threats from Russia.

The Kremlin has dismissed accusations that Russia is behind several unidentified drone flights in Europe, calling them "baseless."/ CNA