June 12, 2007
(Rivière-Beaudette, Quebec) On June 11th, 2007, officers from the Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP Detachment - Cornwall and Valleyfield Offices as well as officers from the Ontario Ministry of Revenue and Canada Border Services Agency were working together during an anti-contraband tobacco smuggling operation in the Cornwall area. At 11:12 a.m., an Intelligence Officer from the Canada Border Services Agency observed a 1998 Ford F150 pick-up truck travel from Akwesasne, Ontario towards Cornwall, Ontario. Officers from the participating agencies followed the truck from Cornwall, Ontario and observed the driver using back country roads and unusual detours in order to travel east of Cornwall. RCMP officer stopped the truck in Rivière-Beaudette, Quebec which is situated near the Ontario-Quebec border. The driver who was alone in the truck was identified as a 44 year old male resident of Archambault Road in South Stormont, Ontario. Officers found him to be in possession of 2,500 re-sealable bags of contraband cigarettes. This represents 500,000 contraband cigarettes that were manufactured in the United States and smuggled into Canada. The value of these cigarettes is $55,000. Officers also seized 1 gram of a substance believed to be crystal methamphetamine that has a street value of $100. The RCMP seized the illegal cigarettes as well as the pick-up truck that is worth $9,000 and arrested the driver. The truck is registered to a 37 year old female resident of Buckshot Road in Akwesasne, Ontario.
(Click on photo to enlarge)
The driver will be charged by the RCMP under authority of Section 32(1) of the Excise Act 2001 for possession of a tobacco product that was not properly stamped according to the Excise Act 2001. Samples of the seized cigarettes were handed over to the Quebec Provincial Police Contraband Smuggling Unit to proceed with charges under the Tobacco Tax Act.
Federal and Provincial agencies who work together to enforce the Excise Act 2001 as well as the Tobacco Tax Act continue to successfully disrupt the supply routes used by organized crime groups who attempt to distribute illegal cigarettes throughout our communities. The public is encouraged to look at the huge impact of the illegal sales of contraband cigarettes on our communities. Loss of tax dollars and financing organized crime groups will have a huge social effect on our citizens.
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Sgt. Michael Harvey
(613)937-2831
Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP Detachment