Tobacco Suppliers Says he Knows of no Reason for Raid

Source from:  By Jeff Lehr jlehr@joplinglobe.com 05/14/2007

The owner of tobacco supply businesses in Joplin and Galena, Kan., that were raided Tuesday by state and federal agents said Wednesday that he does not know what the agents were doing at his businesses. "We don't know," Gary Hall said in a telephone interview. "There's no charges been made. We're in business as usual." Among other business enterprises, Hall owns Sunflower Supply Co. and Rebel Industries in Galena, and Discount Tobacco Warehouse in Joplin. All three businesses were raided Tuesday morning by agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Internal Revenue Service, as well as state law-enforcement agents and officers from Kansas and Missouri. No arrests were made, and no charges were filed. An ATF spokesman said the operation was part of an ongoing law-enforcement investigation but declined to say what the investigation involved. The federal search warrants were sealed in both states. Agents were seen removing computers and records from the Galena businesses. But Hall on Wednesday declined to discuss what was taken. "To our knowledge, we've done nothing wrong," he said. "Our attorneys will handle it." The Oklahoma Tax Commission revoked Sunflower Supply Co.'s wholesaler license in Oklahoma in October 2005. The commission claimed that the company had defrauded the state by shipping cigarettes with improper tax stamps. The claim later was modified to an allegation that the company was guilty of making "drop shipments" to smoke shops in Oklahoma. Such shipments entail merchandise that is paid for by a party other than the receiving party. A settlement between the commission and the company was reached in July 2006. Terms of the settlement were never made public. Enditem