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Latvian gang stashed tobacco in concrete beams on lorry headed for Southampton

The concrete beams used for the smuggling The concrete beams used for the smuggling

A GANG of smugglers from Southampton has been jailed for more than 18 years after smuggling 1.1m cigarettes into the country.

The trio of smugglers, originally from Latvia, were found guilty of evading more than £1.7m in duty by stashing the cigarettes in concrete beams in a lorry that was heading to Southampton.

Sergejs Frolovs, 34, of Northcote Road, Jana Sanina, 29, of Kingsclere Avenue, and Ruslans Rudzitis, 35, Cobden Avenue, were jailed at Maidstone Crown Court after the Polish registered lorry used for smuggling was stopped by customs officers at Dover’s Eastern Docks.

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The court heard how HM Revenue and Customs officers found the trio had been involved in the frequent smuggling of cigarettes into the UK since 2002, bringing in a total of more than 12 million cigarettes.

The defendants had tried to pass themselves off to the authorities as migrant workers or students on low incomes.

But the court heard how Frolovs had opened over 20 bank accounts in the UK, using false identities, including a fake Danish passport that he used to launder the proceeds of his offences.

Found guilty of conspiracy to evade duty and 20 counts of money laundering, Frolov was jailed for ten years and six months.

In sentencing, His Honour Judge MacDonald, QC, said of the ringleader Frolovs, that he “was a consummate liar, who considered himself above the law”.

Sanina was found guilty of conspiracy to evade duty and five counts of money laundering and sentenced to three years.

Rudzitis was found guilty of conspiracy to evade duty and sentenced to five years.

Comments(7)

hulla baloo says...
1:50pm Fri 23 Jan 09

It never fails to amaze me at the anomolies in giving sentences out. It would appear that crimes committed for financial gain attract heavier sentences than those who have taken lives.
For example-

Echo 11:34am Monday 10th November 2008

A DRIVER has been jailed for two years after causing the deaths of two Southampton women when he fell asleep at the wheel of his car.


Where is the sense of reasoning?

Miles Sway says...
2:04pm Fri 23 Jan 09

From Fags to Lags then.

Have to agree with Hulla Baloo, we seem to consider financial crime worse than killing someone, bizarre.

Millbrook Dave says...
2:10pm Fri 23 Jan 09

THE PROFITS OF THE MULTINATIONALS ARE
WORTH MORE THAN PEOPLES' LIVES.

southy says...
2:17pm Fri 23 Jan 09

silly sods fancy bringing concrete beans into the uk, did they not check that uk makes its own concrete products, the only thing that get imported made from concrete is the fancy stuff the one off sort of thing, not plain looking beams.

whostheman123 says...
4:09pm Fri 23 Jan 09

that does seem a bit harsh.
with hulla ballo on that one peoples lives are worth more

IanRRR says...
12:29am Sat 24 Jan 09

Good job they didnt get caught dropping a fag butt in Fareham too!

Georgem says...
5:10pm Sat 24 Jan 09

18 years for daring to deny the chancellor some of his hard-earnt income. An insult to victims of violent crime, really. +1 to all the other posts, wtf is going on in this country? The justice system couldn't be more farcical if judges ran around the courtroom in ladies' underwear to the Benny Hill theme tune, which, in all likelihood, some of them do anyway

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