Over 5 million illegal cigarettes seized in B.C. in 2019-20

The B.C. government has announced it seized more than five million illegal cigarettes last year.

The province said the seizures saved over $1.4 million in potential lost tax revenue.

The illegal tobacco was confiscated during undercover investigations done with local law enforcement.

Surrey, Vancouver, and Kelowna top the list for amounts of tobacco seized during operations:

• Surrey: approximately 3.6 million cigarettes
• Vancouver: approximately 1.6 million cigarettes
• Kelowna: approximately 82,000 cigarettes

Contraband tobacco includes products that are not properly stamped or marked or legal products that are purchased and sold illegally.

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