DIICOT is conducting searches at the offices of several companies and at the homes of several individuals in connection with an organized criminal group involved in the smuggling of petroleum products.

The checks target representatives of certain companies and individuals from Bucharest and from the counties of Ilfov, Constanța, Prahova, Buzău, Bacău, Galați, Cluj, and Bihor. DIICOT is investigating suspicions of organized criminal group, the use of falsified customs, commercial, and transport documents, as well as tax evasion. The investigation starts from two export companies from abroad that, since 2022, allegedly coordinated the smuggling of diesel, using inaccurate documents regarding the imported quantities and facilities of a state oil terminal.

According to prosecutors, the mechanism would have distorted the fuel market, favoring small companies that obtained unjustifiably large profits and allowing the sale of diesel without accounting records, through fictitious operations meant to evade taxes. In total, 11 companies are targeted that allegedly imported diesel between 2022 and 2025.