The Spanish police announced on Sunday the dismantling of a network that runs 3 tobacco factories, employing Ukrainians who fled to Spain after the Russian invasion, "stacked" in temporary housing and working long hours.
The Spanish Civil Guard said in a statement that the network is accused of smuggling "large quantities" of tobacco that it was turning into counterfeit cigarettes sold throughout Spain as well as in neighboring countries.
Twenty-seven people were arrested in Spain as part of the investigation, which was opened with the help of the European police agency, Europol.
In parallel, ten tons of tobacco leaves and 3.5 million packs of cigarettes were seized, with a total value of 37.5 million euros.
The statement added that the three factories, located in the wine region of La Rioja (north), Seville (south) and Valencia (east), were equipped with "advanced technology" machines capable of producing 540,000 packs of cigarettes per day.
The network recruited Ukrainians who came to Spain illegally or who arrived as asylum seekers after the outbreak of war in Ukraine in February 2022.
Ukrainians lived in factories, "huddled in temporary housing without being able to get out, and working long hours".
The Civil Guard statement continued that the heads of the network were "laundering money and living a life of lavishness" in Marbella (south).