More than 170kg of smuggled hookah tobacco was seized from a cafe in Montreal’s Saint-Laurent neighborhood on September 13.
According to a press release from the Montreal City Police Service (SPVM), “The value of the goods seized during the search is nearly $75,000, which represents approximately $67,000 in unpaid taxes.”
The police investigation was led by the SPVM’s ACCES Tabac unit.
The owner of the café and three employees were arrested during the operation for violations of the tobacco tax law. Nearly $12,000 worth of cash and equipment used to smoke hookah tobacco were also seized.
The bar’s 17 customers received $370 in fines for consuming shisha tobacco in a prohibited location.
“One of them was also fined $2,500 for obstructing the work of an inspector from the Department of Health and Human Services,” said the SPVM, which also issued a total of $11,000 worth of traffic tickets to the facility operator -Dollars donated the Tobacco Control Act.
Anyone with information about contraband can call 911 or the local post office. Info-Crime may offer rewards of up to $3,000 for information leading to arrests.