Overview

• Investigators from the Guardia di Finanza in Ancona and Frosinone, coordinated by the Cassino prosecutor’s office, uncovered the site and seized roughly 300 tonnes of contraband, making one arrest and issuing multiple denunciations for aggravated smuggling.
• Technical assessments indicate the plant could produce about 5,000 cigarettes per minute, exceeding 7.2 million per day, with an estimated annual market sale value of more than €900 million.
• The clandestine facility featured three tobacco-processing and packing lines, a concealed hydraulic entrance, ventilation systems, on-site machinery workshops, and quarters with 18 beds for rotating workers.
• Over 170 tonnes of precursors were confiscated, including about 12 million counterfeit cartons, 15 million filters, and 20 million laminated sheets, with illegal-market goods valued at approximately €47.4 million.
• Authorities estimate about €600 million in evaded taxes and €130 million in illicit proceeds, and they seized assets worth around €53 million, including vehicles and a commercial property valued at roughly €3.6 million, as nearby storage sites tied to the network were identified.