It seems as though a massive vodka smuggling ring was busted this week in Estonia. Normally, that would not be news, but how these folks did it is.

It might sound weird and unbelievable but it's a very real criminal case," Mari Luuk, spokeswoman for the Estonian Viru Circuit Prosecutor's Office told AFP.

She said the 11, who included Russians and Estonians, were likely to go on trial soon and faced up to five years in prison if convicted.

The illegal pipeline was submerged in a water reservoir located between Russia and Estonia near the north-eastern Estonian border town of Narva.

According to prosecutors the men had pumped at least 6,200 litres of illegal spirit to Estonia, avoiding paying 57,000 euros (900,000 Estonian Crowns) in excise duty.

"The investigation also revealed that the men had tried to sell some of the alcohol in Tallinn in early November 2004 but the quality of the spirit was too bad and no buyers were found. They then transported their cargo back to Narva and later managed to sell it in Tartu, the second largest town in Estonia," Luuk said.

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