ST. PETERSBURG, September 7 (RAPSI, Mikhail Telekhov) – About one hundred metric tons of cigarettes illegally imported form the United Arab Emirates have been seized by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the body’s Public Relation Center informs on Monday.

The cigarettes were transported in containers carrying 20 metric tons each.

The smuggled goods were declared as tomato paste; later the illegally imported cigarettes were delivered to consumers by trucks, the statement reads.

The value of the seized goods is estimated to make 216 million rubles (about $2.9 million); an alleged orchestrator of this criminal operation was arrested, according to FSB.