Belgium seizes 4.5 million cigarettes in factory raid

Belgian customs officers seized about 4.5 million cigarettes during a raid on an illicit factory in a warehouse near Ninove on Wednesday, arresting 11 people at the site.

Officials said the cigarettes were stacked on pallets and waiting to be shipped for black-market sale. The people arrested were four Poles and seven Ukrainians found around 6:00 a.m. in makeshift dormitories beside the production machinery.

Customs officials said the site was the 12th illicit cigarette facility dismantled in Belgium so far in 2026. Florence Angelici, a customs spokeswoman, said Belgium is attractive to traffickers because it is a transport hub with many warehouses close to markets such as Britain and France.

Customs authorities said 200 million counterfeit cigarettes were seized in Belgium in 2025, representing 97 million euros ($113 million) in lost duties and taxes. A European Court of Auditors report released Tuesday said illicit cigarettes cost the EU about 13 billion euros a year in lost revenue and that about one in 10 cigarettes smoked in the bloc is either smuggled or produced illegally.

Officials said investigators had not yet identified the criminal network behind the Ninove facility or how long the machinery had been operating.