The armed institute said in a statement that the Civil Guard had arrested a man who was trying to smuggle 3,520 cartons of cigarettes into Spain by hiding them in a false bottom created for this reason in a large van.
The events happened when the Fiscal and Border Service of the Guardia Civil checked a vehicle that had just arrived at the Port of Alicante aboard a ship from Algeria.
When the officers asked the car’s only passenger for his papers, they saw something about his behaviour that made them suspicious. They then searched the inside of the car with the help of the Canine Service of the Alicante Command.
Aisa, the dog trained to find illegal tobacco, identified a few places on the van where the agents located a false bottom that contained packets of cigarettes.
At first, they found a few hatches in the floor of the van. After doing the work needed to get inside, they confirmed that there was a false bottom that spanned the whole surface of the enormous van, from under the driver’s seat to the end of the rear loading area.
The police took 3,520 packs of contraband cigarettes that were worth more than €20,000. The 56-year-old man who was responsible for transferring them has been arrested on suspicion of smuggling and brought before the Court of Instruction Number 1 of Alicante, which freed him on bail.
Author: Derek Appleton
No Comment! Be the first one.