Friday, September 20
Berlin police raid illegal shisha producers: massive tax fraud exposed
On Wednesday, at the request of the Berlin public prosecutor’s office, 18 raids were carried out for suspected gang-related tax evasion across Berlin.
Search warrants were executed in Tempelhof-Schöneberg, Neukölln, Reinickendorf, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Spandau and Steglitz. Investigations are currently underway against 6 suspects, aged between 31 and 58.
During the searches, over nine tons of illegal shisha, 117,210 euros in cash, 9,000 US dollars in cash, one ounce of fine gold, various cell phones, laptops and computers, two blank-firing guns and 125 rounds of ammunition were seized.
According to the police, the suspects are believed to have been producing and reselling illegal shisha tobacco since the beginning of 2024, using a tax-registered warehouse at an unspecified location in Berlin. Since March 2024 alone, around 9.4 tonnes of shisha is said to have left the warehouse untaxed, and placed on the free market. The tax loss here is said to be at least half a million euros.
Source: Berliner Morgenpost
