Major smuggling ring busted

2009-02-05
TBT Staff in cooperation with BNS

TALLINN - A gang of about 30 drug dealers has been apprehended by Estonian and Finnish police. The gang reportedly smuggled hundreds of kilograms of drugs over the course of a year.

TheFinnish police have established the smuggling of 270kilograms of hashish, 106 kilograms of amphetamine, 6,000Subutex pills and 400 grams of cocaine to Finland and theturnover of the drug business amounted to nearly 95.5billion kroons (6.1 million euros). According to investigationinformation the drug consignments were hidden into trucksand private cars with dozens of traffickers involved in thesmuggling.

Finnish and Estonianauthorities closely cooperatedin the exposure of the gang and a joint Estonian-Finnishgroup had been set up for its investigation. So, establishment of the criminal proceeds of the persons connected with the drug business and its arrest was the dutyof Estonianauthorities.

According to Finnish media the string of the drug business reached Spain, from where one of suspect of thedrug business was handed over to Finland. According to theFinnish police the case is also connected with theamphetamine case of the Bandidos motorbike gang, in whichthe Finnish hockey star Jere Karalahti was involved.