Polish police and border guards have shut down an illicit cigarette plant operating from warehouses in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. The facility relied on its own power sources in an apparent effort to keep the large-scale operation concealed.

inPoland.net.pl reported the case on Friday, October 9. Three Polish nationals and six Paraguayan nationals were caught at the site while production was under way during the October 1 raid.

Investigators confiscated finished goods valued at almost 18 million zlotys and production and packaging equipment worth more than 2 million zlotys. Searches also uncovered 22 tonnes of tobacco dust and over 10 tonnes of waste, including broken cigarettes, rolling paper and packaging materials.

Prosecutors in Oleśnica charged all nine suspects with participating in an organised criminal group involved in high-volume cigarette manufacturing. A court ordered them held in custody for three months, while the alleged offences carry prison terms of up to eight years.