Moldovan citizen wounded at Moldovan-Romanian border

A citizen of Moldova was wounded at the Moldovan-Romanian border as a result of an attempt to smuggle cigarettes and of altercations with the customs and border authorities of Romania, Info-Prim Neo reports, quoting a communiqué from the Iasi Local Border Police Inspectorate. The information was confirmed for the press by representatives of the Ministry of the Interior of Moldova. According to the communiqué, on January 15 the 23-year-old man driving a Volkswagen registered in Bulgaria wanted to cross the border through the Galati border crossing point. As the Romanian customs inspectors possessed certain information, they decided to thoroughly examine the car. Consequently, the driver pulled backward and, opening the building’s doors with the back of the car and ignoring the requests to stop, headed back for Moldova. Trying to avoid the anti-tire device, the driver lost control of the car, which crashed into the parapet of the bridge. He pulled again backward and tried to strike the approaching border policeman. The police officer warned him to stop and then fired a shot at the tires, trying to avoid being hit. The Moldovan border guard authorities were informed about this case so as to take all the legal measures and stop him. Afterward, representatives of the Moldovan authorities informed that the car was stopped and the driver was taken to the hospital with a serious gun wound. The patient’s state is serious, but stable. When searching the car, the border police found packages of cigarettes hidden in special places in the car.