Lithuanian man fined €6,700 for smuggling cigarettes via hot air balloons

A court in Lithuania has fined a 35-year-old man €6,700 for smuggling thousands of packs of cigarettes from Belarus using hot air balloons, public broadcaster LRT reports.

The Vilnius Regional Court found the man, identified only as Z. B., guilty of organised smuggling and illegal handling of excise goods. He was detained in October 2025 after State Border Guard Service officers caught him moving 4,500 packs of Belarusian “NZ Gold” cigarettes—valued at €23,261 including taxes—through a forest near Didžialaukis village in Vilnius district.

Investigators determined that Z. B. acted as part of a cross-border criminal group, transporting goods worth over 400 minimum monthly wages (MGL) without declaring them to customs. The court ordered the fine to be paid within two years of the ruling, which remains subject to appeal.

The case was prosecuted by the Vilnius District Prosecutor’s Office, with support from the State Border Guard Service.