MOSCOW, October 6. /TASS/. Russia’s Federal Security Service and Federal Customs Service have seized 370 kilograms of synthetic drugs from Ukraine over the past year as smugglers tried to take them into the country across the Russian border with EU member countries, the Federal Security Service said.
"From September 2022 to now, there were 11 prevented attempts to smuggle Ukrainian synthetic drugs to the Russian Federation by way of transit through the countries of the European Union. During that period, the trafficking of 370 kg of Ukrainian-made synthetic drugs was stopped," said the security service, also known as the FSB.
The agency said that, as a result of active search measures and the investigation of the 11 smuggling cases against nine individuals, it was established that drug couriers first went to Kiev where they were given cars with narcotics hidden in secret compartments. Some of the drivers were citizens of Ukraine that are exempt from being conscripted into the Armed Forces of Ukraine, such as people with disabilities, members of large families or priests. Others were citizens of Russia permanently residing in Ukraine. The drugs were then taken to Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia before arriving at the Russian border.
Also detained were 12 members of the drug trafficking criminal groups who were tasked with selling the narcotics on illegal websites in Russia, once they crossed the border. They are now under investigation.