Lithuanian officials say they've taken down an unusually high-tech smuggling operation that relied on weather balloons drifting in from neighboring Belarus. Prosecutors on Tuesday announced the arrest of 21 people suspected of belonging to a tightly organized cigarette-trafficking ring that allegedly launched balloon-borne shipments from Belarus into Lithuanian territory, per Euronews. More than 80 searches were carried out, turning up Belarus-stamped cigarettes, SIM cards, GPS and signal-jamming gear, firearms, and luxury vehicles and property, according to the general prosecutor's office.
Investigators say the group worked with accomplices in Belarus who released the balloons when weather conditions were favorable. Using GPS devices and specialized software, members in Lithuania allegedly tracked the balloons' path, then moved in to collect the cargo and transfer it to prearranged drop points. Prosecutors described the structure of the network as strictly hierarchical, with clear divisions of labor and tight control by its leaders.
All 21 suspects are expected to face charges including participation in a criminal organization, smuggling excise goods, illegal handling of such goods, and assisting a foreign state in actions hostile to Lithuania. The arrests come after Lithuania declared a national emergency over a wave of meteorological balloons entering its airspace from Belarus—incidents that repeatedly shut down Vilnius' main airport and led to the temporary closure of two land crossings. Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenka called the closures a "mad scam" and part of a "hybrid war," while Lithuanian officials suggested Russia-aligned Belarus was using the balloons as "political blackmail" in an effort to reduce sanctions, per the BBC.
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