Derek White arrested
Canadian racer Derek White has been arrested and charged for his role in tobacco-smuggling and drug-running operations. He was charged on three counts each of conspiracy and fraud against the government and one count of profiteering as a criminal organization. White was one of approximately 60 people arrested.
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85 percent pictorial warning will increase smuggling of foreign cigarettes
The rule requiring that packets of tobacco products carry larger pictorial health warning will increase smuggling into India of foreign cigarettes that come without such a warning, said a farmers’ grouping on Friday. “It is a black day for us. By implementing the 85 percent pictorial warning rule, the government is actually trying to murder the tobacco farmers,” MuraliBabu, general secretary of the Federation of All India Farmers’ Associations (FAIFA), told IANS.
The rule increasing the display area of the pictorial health warning on packs of cigarettes and other tobacco products from 40 percent to 85 percent came into effect on Friday. That will be in addition to textual health warning.
BMW Brand Protection – Fake Products, Real Threats
Counterfeiting is often regarded as a victimless “soft” crime, however recent estimates suggest the annual cost of counterfeiting to the automotive industry has now reached £28 billion.
In order to protect our customers and our brand, BMW Brand Protection teams work closely with customs, law enforcement, detective agencies and law firms to tackle the growing issue of counterfeit items such as spare parts, accessories and lifestyle merchandise. A shocking 58 per cent of all counterfeit car parts are purchased online which at first appear to be a bargain, yet often prove to be an inferior quality imitation, presenting potentially serious risk and consequence.
http://www.fleetpoint.org/top-news/bmw-brand-protection-fake-products-real-threats/
Lear MoreSix Nations man wanted in Canada’s largest tobacco-smuggling bust
An Ohsweken man is wanted for allegedly being a buyer in a smuggling ring that involved selling contraband tobacco on Six Nations.
The 38-year-old man was out of the country when about 60 people were arrested Wednesday in a bust headed by the Quebec provincial police.
“He’s not fleeing,” said Quebec police spokesperson Lieutenant Jason Allard. “He just happened to be out of the country. They are just going to wait for him to come back.”
Federal prison nurse sentenced for $22,000 tobacco-smuggling scheme
A former nurse at the federal prison in Lexington was sentenced Wednesday to a year in prison for smuggling tobacco into the prison in exchange for payments from inmates. Michael Hardin, 47, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Danny Reeves on a charge of bribery of a public official. Under federal law, Hardin must serve the entire sentence, then and three years of supervised release, the first year of which is home detention.
Hardin was a registered nurse at the Federal Medical Center in Lexington.
According to his plea agreement, from July 2014 to August 2015, Hardin smuggled cigarettes, snuff and chewing tobacco into the prison for inmates, who paid him a total of $22,429 in return. The inmates used relatives and friends to send money to Hardin.
http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article69196947.html
Lear MoreEU agreements to fight cigarette smuggling
An idea regarding an upcoming European Parliament meeting. MEPs will quiz the Commission on the four agreements currently in force between the EU and Philip Morris International (PMI), Japan Tobacco International (JTI), Imperial Tobacco Limited (ITL) and British American Tobacco (BAT) to fight cigarette smuggling. Members will ask for an assessment, including the possible financial implications, and will question whether these agreements should be prolonged. The agreement with PMI is due to expire in July 2016.
We can attend the Parliament meeting and get all the details. Is it likely that MEPs will extend the agreement? If it is, and if it is not, how will this affect the European tobacco industry?
http://www.internationalnewsservices.com/stories-for-sale/38224-2
Lear MoreDozens arrested in international smuggling, money laundering ring
Police arrested nearly 60 people Wednesday in Quebec and Ontario as they broke up an international money laundering ring.
In what the Sureté du Quebec is calling Operation Tarantula (Mygale), officers have spent months investigating an organized crime ring spanning North America, South America, and Europe.
It culminated in 70 raids Wednesday in Ste. Therese, St. Marthe sur le lac, in the Six Nations reserve in Ontario, and in other areas near Montreal.
http://montreal.ctvnews.ca/dozens-arrested-in-international-smuggling-money-laundering-ring-1.2837711
Interpol cracks down on fake liquor, tainted food products
A global police crackdown has seized over 10,000 tons of illicit or dangerous food and drink including monkey meat, dead insects and fake sugar spiked with fertilizer, the European police agency said Wednesday. In Italy, officers seized 85 tons of olives “painted with copper sulphate to enhance their color,” while British police recovered nearly 10,000 liters of fake or adulterated alcohol, including wine, whisky and vodka. The raids were carried out as part of Operation Opson V, which involved law enforcement from 57 countries as well as global policing agency Interpol and its EU counterpart, Europol said in a statement.
Police target contraband tobacco, drugs and money laundering in mass arrests in Quebec and Ontario
The Surete du Quebec say nearly 60 arrests were made Wednesday morning targeting biker gangs and what they’re calling Aboriginal organized crime outfits on charges of selling contraband tobacco, drugs and money laundering. Raids took place in residences and shops, mainly located in the greater Montreal, the Laurentians, Lanaudiere, Monteregie and on Kahnawake in Quebec, as well as on Six Nations in Ontario.
“Project Mygale is the largest ever made to date in America on tobacco smuggling, but also on cross-border crime between Canada and the United States,” said Capt. Frederick Gaudreau of the Surete du Quebec.
NASCAR’s Derek White Targeted in North America’s Largest Tobacco Smuggling Bust
If you thought the days of professional racers moonlighting in the illicit transportation industry were over, boy were you wrong: Bloomberg reports that NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Derek White was named by Quebec and Ontario police as one of 60 people involved in the single largest tobacco-smuggling bust in North American history. Sheesh.
According to Canadian authorities, White is alleged to be one of the top-ranking members of a huge smuggling operation. The tightly controlled ring purchased shipments of tobacco leaf from North Carolina and spirited them into Canada without paying the necessary import taxes.
http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/news/a28662/derek-white-nascar-tobacco-smuggling/
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