An earlier version of this story incorrectly calculated the estimated approximate tax revenue lost from the unstamped cigarettes based on 165,000 packs, there were 165,000 cigarettes divided into packs of 20 or 25 meaning the actual provincial tax revenue that would have been lost had these cigarettes been sold is between $35,000-$50,000.
The South Shore Integrated Street Crime Enforcement Unit has arrested 2 people after an investigation into Possession of Unstamped Tobacco in Lunenburg and Queens counties.
The investigation prompted police to pull over an SUV along Highway 103 near Chester on Thursday, January 5. Upon searching the car police discover 120,000 unstamped cigarettes.
The two occupants of the SUV, a 72-year-old Milton man, and a 70-year-old Milton woman were charged and arrested under the Excise Act and the Revenue Act of Nova Scotia.
Unstamped cigarettes in the back of an SUV stopped by the RCMP along Highway 103. Photo: RCMP
In Canada, cigarettes are taxed at a high rate, to discourage their use but also to generate tax revenue that can then be used to support health care systems that users of tobacco often end up requiring. When the appropriate taxes have been paid packages of cigarettes receive a sticker-like seal indicating they are legal to sell.
Following the roadside arrests police then executed a search warrant the same day at a house on Mooers Road in Milton, where they discovered an additional 35,000 unstamped cigarettes.
Nova Scotia’s taxes on cigarettes alone work out to around $5.90 per pack, meaning had these cigarettes sold it would cost the government approximately $45,725 in tax revenue.
Both of the individuals who were arrested have since been released on conditions but will return to court in Bridgewater on April 5.
The investigation is still ongoing.
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