Store Manager Admits Selling Untaxed Cigarettes

Source from:  buffalonews.com 07/15/08 08/12/2008

The manager of two Salamanca convenience stores faces a prison sentence of 41 to 51 months after he admitted buying thousands of untaxed cigarettes from a Seneca Indian and selling them on the Internet. Lloyd Long, 57, whose real estate company runs two Unimart Stores in Salamanca, was prosecuted after Seneca Nation officials cooperated with agents from the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Bureau. Long pleaded guilty Friday before Chief U. S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to a count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and failing to file a federal income tax return. Prosecutors say Long bought untaxed cigarettes from a Seneca woman - authorities did not identify her, but sources said she is a former tribal council member - and then sold them on two Internet sites, ezsmokin.com and mightysmokes.com. Assistant U. S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. said that from 2002 through 2007, Long sold hundreds of thousands of untaxed cigarettes from the Web sites. Long is not a member of the Seneca Nation. The Seneca Nation's Import-Export Commission cooperated with the ATF in the investigation. All cigarettes sold by the Senecas must carry a Seneca Nation stamp. Long agreed to testify against others as part of his plea. Enditem