From: Press Release
(CAMDEN) – Legislation authored by Senator Donald Norcross (D-Camden/Gloucester) to increase penalties for selling counterfeit cigarettes is now law. According to recent reports, the backbone of the cigarette smuggling trade within the US consists of highly organized gangs that trade in counterfeit cigarettes because the increased profit margins and significantly lower penalties for conviction make it more lucrative than the drugs or weapons trade. It has also been reported that larger gangs set up branches in the area to use the traffic of cigarettes to bankroll other operations.
“We’re shutting down Tobacco Road,” said Senator Norcross. “We cannot continue allowing mobsters and terrorists to fund their operations by cheating New Jersey residents.”
Counterfeit cigarettes smuggled from abroad look identical to legitimate brands, but without regulation are known to be produced in warehouses with unsanitary conditions. Animal droppings and dirt have been found in the knock-offs which are cheaply made and sold at market rates.
Norcross’s legislation enhances penalties and fines against those caught selling illegal cigarettes. It also increases transparency of sales and strengthens state licensing and reporting requirements to more effectively assist New Jersey law enforcement.
“These operations undermine local businesses, and are dangerous to public safety,” Senator Norcross went on to say. “Law enforcement officials need the tools to properly track and prosecute offenders.”
In an April sting, the FBI arrested four men who transported 2.3 million counterfeit cigarette packs from ports on the East Coast to California. Meanwhile, a cigarette smuggling operation uncovered earlier this year in New York and stretching down the East Coast is suspected of bankrolling foreign militant groups. There have also been instances of armed hijacking of cigarette trucks with fatal consequences.
