Charges are pending against four people allegedly involved in an illegal tobacco-selling operation after police raided three sites in Summerside, P.E.I.
"The investigation still continues after the take-down phase, but that's what we're looking at right now," said RCMP Sgt. Brad Chugg, the lead investigator in the case.
RCMP and Summerside city police officers confiscated 1,750 cartons of cigarettes, 10 vehicles and $6,500 in the raids early Saturday morning.
The targets of the raid were a storage facility in Summerside and two homes — one in Summerside and one in nearby Belmont.
Police said the arrests came after a long investigation focused on a group smuggling illegal cigarettes into Prince Edward Island and then distributing them for sale.
"Indications are these cigarettes are coming from central Canada, from the Montreal area," said Chugg.
He said a plastic bag of 200 illegal cigarettes will sell for around $30 on the street, compared with $90 if the same number were bought legally.