Customs seize over 1,600 litres of untaxed rakia near Varna and Shumen
The brandy was stored in plastic water containers at a tourist complex and on private properties. Over 15,000 litres of home-made rakia have been seized this year.
Symbolic image · Photo: Hakuna.Matata / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Mobile teams of the Central Customs Directorate seized 1,606 litres of high-proof rakia with no Bulgarian excise stamp and no proven origin during inspections in the Varna customs area, in the Varna and Shumen regions, from 14 to 17 October. The Customs Agency announced the seizure. The alcohol was stored in plastic water containers.
At a tourist complex, inspectors found 431 litres of apricot, grape and plum rakia behind the bar, in other rooms and in a storeroom, while the menu offered draught "home-made rakia". Another 1,175 litres and an idle distillation unit were found on two properties belonging to one private individual, who had sold untaxed rakia to the inspectors at the start of the check.
Finance Minister Galab Donev said about half of the country's rakia comes from home stills, and more than 15,000 litres of home-made rakia sold commercially have been seized since the start of the year. The government proposes amending the excise law to penalise such trade because of the risk of high methanol content.