Two train conductors were sentenced to 5 and 6 years in prison, respectively, after they were caught preparing 250,000 cigarettes to be smuggled out of Moldova. The sentence was issued by the Balti Court in a case coordinated by the North Office of the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime and Special Cases, IPN reports.
According to prosecutors, the two employees of Moldova’s Railways, aged 38 and 45, frequently traveled abroad due to their service.
The drivers were preparing to transport the cigarettes clandestinely, but their plan was foiled by law enforcement officers. The searches resulted in the discovery of a significant part of the merchandise in the home of the mother of one of the defendants. The other cigarettes were hidden in a car used by both of the convicts. The cigarettes were wrapped in black polyethylene for being camouflaged through customs and border controls.
One of the two conductors has a criminal record and was tried for causing bodily injury. The other man was dismissed for acts similar to those for which he was convicted.
Currently, both men are in custody, but they benefit from the presumption of innocence until a final court judgment is passed.
