Smuggled gold jewelry worth more than 80 000 BGN were found by the customs officials of the Lesovo customs point in a car entering the country from Turkey.
The check was carried out within the framework of the joint anti-smuggling operation, with the participation of teams from the “Customs” Agency, the Directorate General of Border Police, the Directorate General of Combating Organized Crime. and National Revenue Agency.
On 10.06.2024, the passenger car with Bulgarian registration arrived at Lesovo highway on the inbound route from Turkey. The car was driven by a Turkish citizen with the initials S.K., a permanent resident of Bulgaria. In the customs control area, he stated that he had nothing to declare.
Customs inspectors select the vehicle for a thorough inspection. In the course of the control actions, a total of 6 packages containing 206 yellow metal jewelry items were found in different places in the car interior and in the driver's clothes – rings, bracelets, earrings. The total weight of the undeclared ornaments is 699.24 grams. According to the initial examination by an expert, they are made of 14 carat gold (sample 585) with a total market value of BGN 80,412.
The contraband gold items were seized and pre-trial proceedings were initiated in the case by an investigative customs inspector, which is being conducted under the supervision of the District Prosecutor's Office – Yambol.
Since the beginning of the year, 6,352 kg of contraband gold articles have been detained at the Lesovo police station. For comparison, during the first six months of the previous year 2023, the gold items detained at the point were a total of 1,273 kg.