Customs officers seized €150,000 in cash, duty-free tobacco products and suspected drugs in separate checks at the Agios Dometios crossing point, while animal products were also confiscated at the Deryneia crossing point in unrelated cases.
On March 12, 2026, customs officers at Agios Dometios stopped a vehicle driven by a woman of Russian origin with Cypriot citizenship. Another woman, also of Russian origin and holding Cypriot citizenship, was in the passenger seat.
During the search, officers found two cartons containing 200 cigarettes each, 12 cartons containing 200 heated tobacco sticks each, and two packs of rolling tobacco weighing a total of 100 grammes. The products did not carry health warnings in Greek and Turkish, indicating that they were duty-free.
Officers also searched a bag belonging to the passenger and found bundles of cash totalling €150,000. According to the source text, no clear explanations or supporting documents were provided about the origin of the money or its intended use.
The two women were arrested for offences committed in the act, while the tobacco products and the vehicle used to transport them were seized. They were later released and the vehicle was returned after their proposal for an out-of-court settlement was accepted on payment of a total of €600. The cash was retained by customs officers for further investigation in cooperation with the police and Mokas.
Later the same night, also on March 12, 2026, customs officers at Agios Dometios searched a vehicle driven by a man of Greek origin and nationality.
During the search, officers found a plastic tube containing a small quantity of cannabis, a small nylon bag containing a small quantity of a transparent crystalline substance believed to be crystal methamphetamine, known as “Crystal”, a small cannabis grinder and two vaporising devices for the crystalline narcotic substance.
The driver was arrested for an offence committed in the act and members of the drug squad YKAN were immediately called to the scene. The suspect and the seized items were handed over to them.
In a separate case on March 15, 2026, customs officers at the Deryneia crossing point searched a passing vehicle driven by a foreign national with Cypriot citizenship.
During the search, officers found and seized, in breach of the Green Line Regulation, three litres of a dairy product, ayran, 700 grammes of cheese, 1 kilo and 300 grammes of salami, and seven packs of fresh chicken with a total weight of 4 kilos and 744 grammes.
