July 26, 2007
Limoges, Ontario - On July 24th, 2007, at 10:09 a.m., intelligence officers from the Canada Border Services Agency working with officers from the Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP Detachment- Cornwall Office stopped a 1998 Pontiac Montana van on Beaver Lane in Limoges, Ontario after officers followed it from Cornwall Island in Akwesasne, Ontario. A search of the van revealed it to be loaded with cases of contraband cigarettes. The RCMP seized the smuggling van worth $3,725 as well as 1,200 re-sealable bags of contraband cigarettes that were manufactured in the United States and smuggled into Canada. This represents 240,000 contraband cigarettes worth $26,400 that were not properly packaged or stamped and were destined to be sold illegally.
The driver and registered owner of the van, a 24 year old female resident of Sarsfield Road in Sarsfield, Ontario was arrested by the RCMP under Section 32(1) of the Excise Act 2001 for possession of a tobacco product not properly stamped according to the Excise Act 2001. She was later released and no charges have been laid before the courts as this matter is still under investigation.
One of the main reasons we are seeing more contraband tobacco seizures is because law enforcement on both sides of the border and within Canada are partnering more. We have better integrated intelligence and more integrated operations.
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Sgt. Michael Harvey
Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP Detachment
613-937-2831