On September 13, 2019, as part of a special operation, officers of the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (Centralne Biuro Antykorupcyjne, CBA) detained 6 people, including two Ukrainian citizens claiming to be officers of the Ukrainian special services. The special operation conducted by the CBA concerns smuggling large amounts of amber on the territory of Poland.
According to media reports, the arrests took place in one of the hotels in Jarosław, in the podkarpackie voivodeship. Amber stones were supposed to come from Ukraine.
It is worth noting that this country has rich resources of the mineral, among others, in the Rivne region. It is a subject of illegal extraction. Its areas of existence are controlled by criminal groups, which is a major problem for the authorities in Kiev. As a result of this practice, the financial losses of the Ukrainian budget amount to hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The method of illegal amber extraction, also results in enormous damage to the natural environment.
Source: CBA, TVN24