From: Standard-Freeholder
By Greg Peerenboom, Cornwall Standard Freeholder
An anti-contraband tobacco official says new legislation should beef up police force’s capabilities against cigarette smuggling.
The federal government is passing tougher legislation, Bill C-10, that would allow police to slap smugglers with criminal charges, possibly leading to much harsher convictions, said Gary Grant, national spokesperson for the National Coalition Against Contraband Tobacco.
“We’re looking toward a Quebec model,” Grant said, after meeting with Cornwall Community Police Service Chief Dan Parkinson.
Grant explained that Quebec municipal law enforcement officers have the tools to lay more serious charges against smugglers. In Ontario currently, contraband tobacco smugglers are charged under the Federal Excise Act, which results in a monetary fine, but no possible incarceration.
Grant added the Ontario government has increased prosecution of contraband dealers with Bill 186.
