Russian Customs uncover pipeline to smuggle vodka into Europe

Moscow, Sept.18 : Russian customs chiefs have uncovered an underwater pipeline that was being used to smuggle cheap vodka from Russia into the European Union.

The mile-long channel was being used to pump vodka into Estonian capital Tallinn. It ran from the Russian border beneath a reservoir and into the Estonian town of Narva. Eleven suspects have been charged over the scam. Four ethnic Russians are believed to have been the ringleaders, according to a report in The Sun.

All face five years in prison if convicted when the trial begins.

Prices of vodka in Russia are a third cheaper than in the ex-Soviet state of Estonia, which has been in the EU since May 2004.

Investigators are still trying to establish how much sold on the black market.

ANI