Extensive Monetary Losses, Issuance of One Arrest Warrant, and Discovery of Three Illicit Manufacturing Sites
In a significant operation on July 3, 2025, the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart seized three professional production facilities for water pipe tobacco. The operation involved over 100 officers and searches of around 20 buildings.
The confiscated water tank tobacco products, along with extensive technical equipment for manufacturing, are estimated to have evaded approximately 1.5 million euros in taxes. The Public Prosecutor's Office Stuttgart and the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart are conducting ongoing investigations into the matter.
Water pipe tobacco is a mixture of tobacco, sugar, humectants, flavors, and is consumed using a water pipe. In Germany, its production is subject to licensing, and only tobacco products with a valid German tax stamp are marketable and may be placed on the market.
Possible customers or sellers of the seized products could include organized criminal networks or individuals involved in illegal trade. However, specific identities have not been publicly disclosed by authorities in Stuttgart. Five men aged 28 to 36 from Syria are under investigation for suspected organized tax evasion in connection with this case.
Three of the suspects are well-known to the investigating authorities and have been under investigation by the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart since 2023 for similar offenses in another ongoing procedure. The alleged ringleader was arrested by order of the Stuttgart District Court and is currently in custody.
An arrest of this amount was issued by the competent financial authority to secure assets, enabling high-value personal items such as two cars, watches, and electronic devices to be secured for the criminal proceedings.
For further details, you can refer to the joint press release by the Public Prosecutor's Office Stuttgart and the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart from May 24, 2023. If you have any inquiries regarding the investigation, you can contact Daniel Schnitzer of the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart. His contact information includes telephone, mobile, fax, and email, and the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart can also be contacted via their press/public relations department.
The Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart's website is http://www.zoll.de. The original content was transmitted by the Customs Investigation Office Stuttgart via news aktuell.
