July 11, 2007
(St-Lazare, Quebec) On July 6th, 2007, at 9:01 a.m., an intelligence officer from the Canada Border Services Agency-Cornwall office was conducting a contraband tobacco smuggling investigation and followed two vehicles from the Cornwall, Ontario area that were travelling towards the Quebec border. Shortly after, the officer contacted officers from the Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP detachment- Valleyfield office who stopped the two vehicles on Highway 20 eastbound near Saint-Lazare, Quebec. The first vehicle, described as a 1995 Cadillac with New York licence plates, was found to contain 750 re-sealable bags of full flavour cigarettes in the trunk area of the car. The driver and registered owner of the Cadillac, an 18 year old male resident of St. Andrews Street in Massena, New York, was arrested and the smuggling vehicle and contraband cigarettes were seized. The second vehicle, described as a 2000 Ford Victoria with New York licence plates, was found to contain 750 re-sealable bags of full flavour cigarettes in the trunk area of the vehicle. The driver, a 19 year old male resident of Roseveltown, New York, was arrested and the vehicle and contraband cigarettes were seized. This vehicle is registered to a 20 year old male resident of Raquette Point Road in Hogansburg, New York.
These cigarettes were manufactured in the United States and smuggled into Canada and are worth $33,000. Both drivers were released and 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 illegal cigarettes will be given to officers from the Quebec Provincial Police Project ACCESS so that they may also charge the drivers under the Provincial Tobacco Tax Act.
Organized crime groups do not file annual returns so it is difficult to know what percentage of contraband tobacco the RCMP is seizing. I can say that we have a number of major operations underway focussed on the illegal trade and we will continue to see enforcement actions and coordination with the Canada Border Services Agency, and our other law enforcement partners that are not only targeting the contraband itself, but the criminal organizations that are contributing to this.
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Sgt. Michael Harvey
Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP Detachment
(613) 937-2831