OPP lasso 9.1m bootleg smokes

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) seized more than nine million illegal cigarettes following a traffic stop on Highway 407 near Bronte, Ont. A transport truck carrying about 9.1 million cigarettes was stopped and the contraband seized. Saskatchewan RCMP meanwhile seized 42,000 cartons of illegal cigarettes after stopping a semi-trailer for speeding on Highway 1 near Gull Lake. A B.C. man was busted. Bootleg smokes are now common across Canada. Contraband tobacco to organized crime is just another commodity. It’s a low risk, high profit crime, and penalties are light.

Its estimated that untaxed, contraband cigarettes now account for up to half of total sales in British Columbia.

Trafficking in illegal cigarettes, a huge business in Central Canada, moved west. So say former cops working in illicit trade prevention for the tobacco companies. They’re fighting back but it isn't easy when legal smokes cost $135-$180 a carton and 200 cigarettes sell on the black market for $35. Legal cigarettes are required to self extinguish when not in use. Contraband tobacco products don't have that feature and are responsible for a multitude of fires.

See ----->Traffic stop leads Vernon cops to 1.5m contraband smokes