Customs officers found more than half a million undeclared British pounds in a lorry at Kaptain Andreevo checkpoint

A new attempt to smuggle a large amount of undeclared currency was prevented by the customs officers at Kapitan Andreevo customs checkpoint, the Customs Agency reported on July 5.

On July 4, 2022, around 18.25, a lorry with Turkish registration arrived at the checkpoint on its way from Germany via Bulgaria to Iraq. The vehicle was selected for a thorough customs inspection, during which polythene envelopes containing banknotes in denominations of GBP 5, 10, 20 and 50 were found in the refrigeration unit of the semi-trailer, as well as in the dashboard in the driver's cabin.

The total amount of undeclared currency found was GBP 531,315 with a currency equivalent of BGN 1,208,890.

A fast-track proceeding was initiated in the case by a customs investigator under the supervision of Haskovo District Prosecutor's Office-Svilengrad Territorial Division.

The driver, a 36-year-old Turkish citizen, has been charged with failing to declare in writing to the customs authorities the currency carried across the border, which is an external border of the European Union. The currency is of particularly large amount.

The offence is qualified under Article 251(1) of the Criminal Code.