Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has dismissed Head of the National Customs Authority after a huge cigarette smuggling scandal which resulted in numerous detentions and arrests of customs and police officers suspected of corruption.

At its Wednesday sitting, the Romanian government decided to discharge Head of the National Customs Authority Radu Marginean due to corruption allegations, said the government's spokesperson, and the Agerpres national news agency reported on.

According to the latest findings, the police detained and questioned around 150 people on Tuesday, which resulted in detention of 86 customs and police officers who are suspected of having taken bribe, thus enabling cigarette smuggling.

The operation was performed at the Romania-Serbia border crossings.

More than 1,200 policemen and members of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) participated in the Tuesday operation at the border crossings Naidas, Stamora Moravita and Deta Cruceni, who also searched dozens of houses of the customs employees.

The investigators obtained the evidence by computers which had built-in cameras and microphones. The customs and police officers are suspected of taking bribes for tolerating cigarette smuggling, which brough about EUR 6,000 to one shift of 12 people daily.

Prior to this, Romanian authorities carried out the similar operation at the Romania-Ukraine border crossings, when 60 people were detained.

According to the tax administration's data, Romania loses around EUR 1 billion on an annual basis due to cigarette smuggling.