A simple collision on the highway will cost a repeat trafficker dearly, who received a hefty fine after the police discovered 275,000 contraband cigarettes in his damaged vehicle.
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Courtesy photo, Revenue Quebec
Authorities seized 275,400 cigarettes.
David W. Barrie was found guilty of possession of contraband tobacco in absentia, since he failed to appear for the hearing in September 2021.
But he only learned last week of the $165,000 bill that awaited him in the wake of his collision.
On January 28, 2020 in the early morning, the 66-year-old man had a car accident while traveling on Highway 20 near Sainte-Eulalie, in Centre-du-Québec.
Police officers from the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) were then dispatched to the scene and quickly identified Mr. Barrie as the owner of the vehicle.
Then, opening the doors of the white minivan, the two officers found that it was filled with garbage bags, boxes and packages containing contraband cigarettes.
In all, the SQ was able to seize 275,400 contraband cigarettes of eight different brands.
Courtesy photo, Revenue Quebec
The boxes contained cartridges of eight marks.
Judgement
Barrie was acting with a third party and carrying out his transport at night, we can read in the judgment rendered on October 31.
“This delinquent behavior is a serious economic and social problem. It deprives the state of significant revenue. The various taxes imposed on tobacco serve as the basis for the government’s overall tobacco control strategy,” Judge Jean-Georges Laliberté mentioned in passing.
“The human and social costs are significant,” he continues.
He therefore imposed a fine on Barrie of $164,138.40, intended to reimburse the tax that should have been paid on each cigarette sold.
Photo courtesy, Court of Quebec
Jean-Georges Laliberté, judge.
The prison
Barrie also received 30 days in jail. The magistrate took into account that the accused must remain in Nova Scotia at the bedside of his 91-year-old mother, who has kidney disease.
In 2019, the resident of this maritime province was also fined $12,000 for a similar offence.
Since the beginning of the year, Quebec courts have imposed fines totaling nearly $5.5 million for cigarette smuggling, according to a calculation by the Journal.