The FCS Russia press office reports in an official release. The headline reads: “Customs authorities opened 619 criminal cases and over 37,000 administrative cases in Q1 2026”.
In January–March 2026 customs authorities opened 619 criminal cases. The largest group — 270 — concerned smuggling of strategically important goods and resources, potent substances and weapons (Article 226.1 of the Criminal Code).
Other frequent offences included evasion of customs payments (135 cases, Article 194) and currency transfers using forged documents (112 cases, Article 193.1).
Typical items involved timber, psychotropic and narcotic substances, alcohol, tobacco, motor vehicles and consumer goods.
Over the same period 37,061 administrative cases were opened, including 26,475 for breaches of customs rules (Article 16 of the Administrative Code) and 18,443 under smuggling-related articles 16.1–16.4.
Violations most often involved currency, tobacco, plant products, timber, passenger cars and alcohol. Administrative fines totalled RUB 560.5 million, and property worth more than RUB 2.7 billion was transferred to competent agencies.
