Charges Follow Seizure of $2 Million Worth of Counterfeit Cigarettes

Source from:  Graeme Wood,, Vancouver Sun September 09, 2008 09/11/2008

A seizure of nearly $2 million worth of counterfeit cigarettes that moved through Deltaport on Aug. 6 has led to charges against four men in Ontario, according to Cpl. Norm Massie of the RCMP E division border integrity unit in Surrey. Charged with unlawful possession of tobacco products contrary to the Excise Act are Gou Ping Wu of Stouffville, and Wai Sun Yeung, Yi Huang and Kai Fa Choi, all of Markham. They are expected to appear in court Oct. 10. The cigarettes, branded as Players and du Maurier, were discovered by the Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP. They came from China and were destined for street merchants in Ontario. Massie said his team counted more than 38,000 cigarette cartons, which nearly filled the 40-foot container they were in. Each carton has a street value of about $50. In a sting operation, the border integrity unit allowed the container to go by rail to Ontario where it was met by the accused. They were arrested after the cigarettes were moved into two five-tonne trucks. Counterfeiting is a lucrative business for criminals and its economic damages are underestimated by the public, said Massie. "People's views on counterfeiting have to change," he said. The seized cigarettes are worth about $1.6 million in duties and taxes, according to an RCMP statement. Walt Charlton, the director of the special investigations branch for the ministry of small business and revenue, which oversees tobacco sales in B.C., said the seizure was "significant." Although there is no big counterfeit cigarette problem in the Lower Mainland, he said the cigarettes can be found around town. Enditem