Overview

• The Berlin Regional Court began hearing a case against six men accused of gang-related theft, tobacco tax evasion and organized fencing.
• Investigators say the group cut open containers on freight trains, sometimes while they were moving, to seize cigarette loads.
• The indictment covers nine incidents from July 2020 to February 2025, with losses estimated at nearly €1 million and more than three million cigarettes stolen.
• Five defendants are alleged to have carried out the thefts, with most goods delivered to a 53-year-old co-defendant identified as the primary buyer.
• Authorities have pursued the case with Dutch and Romanian partners and Europol since 2022, conducting February raids that made three arrests; the trial is scheduled to resume on October 8 after settlement talks.