New York City smokers are subjected to the highest cigarette taxes in the country: $5.85 per pack. As the taxes increased, smuggling cigarettes has become a lucrative business opportunity, but Queens District Attorney Richard Brown is returning fire at illegal smuggling.
Last week, Brown announced the formation of the Crimes Against Revenue Unit (CARU), which is tasked with investigating and prosecuting individuals who attempt to bypass tax obligations, such as smuggling cigarettes.
Brown also announced that working with national and statewide law enforcement agencies, the Queens DA’s office arrested 12 men and seized 4,000 cartons of untaxed cigarettes.
Many smugglers attempt to get cigarettes into the country through John F. Kennedy Airport. Rameshwar Kowlassar of Jamaica allegedly brought 35 cartons of untaxed cigarettes from Guyana in his luggage. Similarly, Bobirjon Shakirov of Forest Hills allegedly brought 179 cartons of cigarettes from Uzbekistan in April. According to the DA’s office, the tax value of the cigarettes was nearly $11,000.
“[Customs and Border Protection] Officers within JFK are some of the most dedicated and professional law enforcement officers in the nation,” said Brian Humphrey, the port director for Customs and Border Protection and JFK. “Through the collaborative efforts of our law enforcement partners we were able to disrupt smuggling efforts through our international airport and the U.S. Postal system.”
CBP officers often work closely with the postal system to identify and prosecute cigarette smuggling. In March, thirty cartons of Korean cigarettes, which allegedly belonged to Kwang Soo Lee of Flushing, were found at JFK’s International Mail Facility. According to Brown, a search warrant executed at Lee’s house turned up an additional 11 cartons of untaxed cigarettes.
Qi Chen and Fang Zhen, both of Flushing, are also charged with accepting cartons of untaxed cigarettes from China. Investigators allegedly found an additional 41 cartons and $6,519 in cash at their house.
The arrests were part of Brown’s ongoing battle against cigarette tax evasion. In November, Giuseppe Sciulara of Middle Village was arrested after police found more than 1,000 cartons of untaxed cigarettes and more than $45,000 in cash at his home and storage unit. Sciulara pleaded guilty in March and forfeited $45,620 to the state Department of Taxation and Finance.
“Cigarette smuggling to evade state and local taxes is a multimillion dollar industry,” Brown said. “It is a highly profitable tax-free cash business for those involved in it. However, it cheats taxpayers who must dip into their pockets to pay higher taxes. And it cheats the government as well by fueling an underground economy which does not pay much needed state and city taxes.”
The new CARU unit, which will be led by Assistant DA Andrew Kaufman, might have its hands full. Senator Kevin Parker of Brooklyn is currently sponsoring a bill that would raise the state’s tax on cigarettes to six bucks a pack, making cigarette taxes in the city a whopping $7.50 per pack.
by Eric Yun
