Released on April 4, 2011
Fifty-nine cartons of cigarettes illegally imported into Saskatchewan have been seized by tobacco enforcement officials with the Ministry of Finance.
Finance enforcement officers made the seizure west of Saskatoon on Highway 16, before the tobacco reached its intended destination.
The cigarettes originated on the Kahnawake reserve in Quebec and appear to be part of a broader attempt by Rainbow Tobacco, a reserve-based company, to market its tobacco in western Canadian provinces.
In February 2011, 100 cartons of cigarettes from Rainbow Tobacco were seized by tobacco enforcement officials in Saskatchewan. Similar seizures were undertaken this year in Alberta and British Columbia.
The Ministry of Finance may assess a penalty in the amount of three times the tax against anyone possessing tobacco in contravention of The Tobacco Tax Act, 1998. In addition, a person convicted of an offence under the Act may also be subject to a fine of up to $10,000 and in the case of a corporation, a fine of up to $50,000 may be imposed.
The provincial tobacco tax amounts to $42 per carton of cigarettes. The case remains under investigation.
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For more information, contact:
Kathryn Newton
Finance
Regina
Phone: 306-787-8109
Email: kathryn.newton@gov.sk.ca