As part of the preventive measures aimed at identifying counterfeit goods, officers of the MIA for Tatarstan checked Kazan major points of sale. The checks showed that not all the sellers perform their duties conscientiously .

Operatives of the Administration for Economic Security and Combating the Corruption of the MIA for the Republic of Tatarstan received operative information that one of the Kazan shops sold hookah tobacco without excise stamps. Police officers acting as ordinary consumers, purchased in the shop a few packs of tobacco products with obvious signs of counterfeiting.

The check revealed that all the necessary supporting documents and certificates of conformity for the product were missing, and there was no license even for procurement, storage and supply of hookah tobacco products in the territory of Russia. In total during the check there was seized more than 4 thousand packages of tobacco without excise stamps. Currently, all the seized goods have been sent for examination, the results of which will resolve the issue of initiating a criminal case.

The checks were carried out in points of sales of tablet PCs, smart-phones and mobile devices. So police officers, acting as ordinary buyers purchased 8 mobile phones marked with a brand of one of the most popular manufacturers. The price of the phone was four times less than that of an original phone. During the inspection the owner of the pavilion could not provide to the police the necessary documentation authorizing the use of the trademark. Administrative proceedings have been instituted against him, the seized phones have been sent for expert investigation.

During the operation, police officers also found that several residents of Kazan were engaged in manufacturing counterfeit alcoholic products, using different names of Tatarstan manufacturers. The counterfeit alcohol was produced in one of the garages, then the alcohol was supplied to bistros and wineglass-bars, located in different areas of Kazan.

During the inspection of the garage the police seized not only alcoholic beverages, but also the equipment, used for manufacturing the counterfeit alcohol. Currently, samples of the seized products have been sent for expert investigation to the Mid-Volga Regional Center of forensic examinations. The issue of initiating criminal proceedings is being considered.

MIA Press-Service for the Republic of Tatarstan