Federal government, RCMP vow to choke off supply
Jump to full article: London (Ontario) Free Press (ca), 2008-05-08
Author: KATHLEEN HARRIS, SUN MEDIA NATIONAL BUREAU
Intro: The Conservative government is declaring war on black-market smokes -- a flourishing industry that fuels organized crime and sucks hundreds of millions of dollars from federal tax coffers.
In a joint news conference with the RCMP, Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day pledged to choke off suppliers, seize more smokes and shut down illegal manufacturers -- many of them on First Nations reserves. A number of RCMP hires will be dedicated to the crackdown strategy, and a new public awareness campaign will warn against buying bargain-priced smokes.
"You are actually in effect supporting a host of criminal activities that literally lead to destructive activities in your own communities -- destruction and even death depending on the level of criminal activity you are supporting," Day said.
Last year, 618,000 cartons of contraband smokes and 28,000 kilograms of loose tobacco were seized -- a 35 per cent rise in the last decade.
Most of the illicit weed is made on New York side of the Akwesasne reserve and smuggled into Canada.
Others illegal cigarettes are produced in Canada, including many on native reserves.
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