Provincial tax investigators made Manitoba’s largest seizure of illegal cigarettes from a single person in a sting dubbed Project Shrek, leading to charges against six suspects.
More than three million contraband smokes were seized from one suspect, along with more than $3,000 in cash, a truck and a utility trailer.
Smaller amounts of cigarettes were seized from other suspects to bring the total to 3.4 million, the province said in a news release Thursday.
PATRICK SISON / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES More than three million contraband smokes were seized from one suspect, along with more than $3,000 in cash, a truck and a utility trailer.
Numerous Winnipeg stores are facing charges and suspension of their retail tobacco licences.
They include Royal Supermarket (689 Wellington Ave.), Honey Convenience Store (5-353 Provencher Blvd.) and Muncheez on Dufferin (325 Dufferin Ave.), the province said.
The probe, named after the animated film character Shrek, targeted people who were allegedly smuggling illegal smokes into Manitoba from other provinces. (The province refused to explain why the name Shrek was chosen for the project.)
The previous record seizure from an individual happened during a September 2020 bust involving provincial tax investigators and Brandon police. A total of 3.5 million cigarettes were seized in that investigation, with the bulk from one of four suspects.
The sale of untaxed tobacco products is illegal in Manitoba.
The contraband cigarettes represent $1 million in tobacco tax revenue to the province and $4 million in tax penalties upon conviction.
Investigators from Manitoba Finance led the operation, with help from the the Winnipeg Police Service and the provincial police of Ontario and Quebec.
The suspects, all adults, are facing a variety of charges under the Tobacco Tax Act, Tax Administration and Miscellaneous Taxes Act, and Criminal Code.
People convicted for the first time under the tax acts face fines between $1,000 and $10,000 and/or up to six months in jail, plus a potential triple tax penalty.
Repeat convictions carry fines of between $10,000 and $50,000 and/or up to 12 months in jail, along with a potential quadruple tax penalty.
In addition to being a tax loss to Manitobans, the smuggling and sale of illegal, unregulated cigarettes pose increased health and fire hazards, according to the province.
It said the smokes may contain harmful ingredients or lack self-extinguishing features of legal brands.
