Greenford ringleader of massive smuggling operation sent down

The 32-year-old, originally from Serbia, supervised the criminals' warehouse in Harrow.
Lorry drivers Damjan Bukvic, 26, an Italian resident born in Serbia, and Sasa Milenkovic, 44 of Serbia, received two and three years respectively.

Distributer Kamal Dizyee, 45, an Iraqi-born British resident was handed a 15-month sentence.

The four men were sentenced at Harrow Crown Court for conspiracy to deal with goods, with the intent to defraud. Kokoric was also sentenced in relation to concealing criminal property, all last Friday (31).

A fifth man, Steven Whitelaw, will be sentenced later this month.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) criminal investigators estimate between June and December 2008 Milenkovic and Bukvic made 34 journeys to the UK, through Dover, in two Italian-registered lorries. The gang purchased wholesale quantities of duty-free tobacco in Luxembourg, which was smuggled into the UK concealed behind legitimate loads, mostly furniture.

Milenkovic and Bukvic delivered the smuggled tobacco to industrial units in Canterbury and Harrow, where it was stored ready for distribution to customers.

Igor Kokoric organised the importation, controlled the warehouse units and was in charge of the distribution network.

Kamal Dizyee and Steven Whitelaw both visited the warehouses to purchase bulk consignments of tobacco.

Investigators staked out the men, making a series of arrests between November and January.

Following raids, about £33,000 was found in Kokoric's home which was seized by officers.

Andrew Pavlinic, HMRC Assistant Director of Criminal Investigation, said: "Tobacco smugglers don't care about undercutting honest retailers and tobacconists - all criminals care about is profit." Anyone with information about smuggling should call the Customs' Hotline on 0800 59 5000.