The Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia arrested 5 individuals for sale of excise-free cigarettes designated for destruction through use of fake documents on the elimination of the products.

The group had been employed in a company that had been selected as the contractor of the State Property Agency of the Economy Ministry for the destruction of excise-free tobacco products that had been removed from market circulation.

Instead of destroying the products, the offenders signed fake documentation on their elimination while selling the cigarettes through individual citizens, it added.

The agency seized 5,241 packages of cigarettes worth over GEL 22,000 that had been designated by the group for sale as part of their scheme.

The products were seized in Tbilisi, Rustavi and Gardabani. The offenders face between 6 and 8 years in prison.