As state revenue agents crack down on cigarettes brought into the state, police said burglars have stolen a truckload of cigarettes from a Murfreesboro warehouse.

State law limits a person from bringing in more than two cartons of cigarettes, but detectives and federal agents are still trying to figure out how many cartons were stolen in an elaborate heist. (more…)

PARIS (AP) — Some 10,000 people, mainly tobacco sellers, marched through Paris on Wednesday to protest a smoking ban in French cafes as of Jan. 1.

The demonstrators want a modification to the decree banning their Gitanes, Gauloises and other brands of tobacco in all cafes, restaurants and nightclubs at the start of 2008 so that smoking rooms with ventilation can be set up in the establishments (more…)

NOBLESVILLE — Noblesville Fire Chief Ken Gilliam is working with other fire officials and a state senator to get Indiana to require that only fire-safe cigarettes will be sold hereFire-safe cigarettes extinguish themselves after a period time if the smoker does not take a puff, said Gilliam, adding that 22 states have laws requiring them. “Having these (fire-safe cigarettes) means fewer lives lost and fewer property losses because of cigarettes being left unattended,” Gilliam said. (more…)

Researchers have found a way to cut a smoker’s dependence on nicotine without them having to stop smoking. There are proposals right now in Congress that would give the FDA that right to regulate smoking and the results of the study give strong evidence that this should be allowed. If the measures pass and the FDA does get the authority, they will be allowed to develop and enforce new standards that will make cigarettes less harmful. (more…)

No. People who smoke will continue smoking, and I don’t think price factors in when people start smoking. However, the increase will definitely allow for additional funds for the Medicaid program, which is a good reason for the tax. (more…)

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.’s announcement that it will manufacture all of its cigarette brands using fire-safe technology is a victory for all of those interested in public safety, said the National Fire Protection Association and the group it coordinates, the Coalition for Fire-Safe Cigarettes. (more…)

Richmond, VA (AHN) - Philip Morris USA has established a $350-million research facility in the hope of producing “healthier cigarettes” that reduce the harmful effects of smoking. (more…)

I would have never imagined that someone could get sentence to prison for the sell and distribution of tobacco products. It seems that the industry of contraband cigarettes is as big an enterprise as drug smuggling. Is the industry of trafficking of contraband cigarettes really big business these days?

“Bootlegging contraband cigarettes is a multi-million dollar industry,” said United States Attorney James McDevitt. “Convictions of this nature are the
first step in dismantling the corrupt enterprises engaging in this trafficking.”

According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington, Peter Mahoney and his co-conspirators were convicted for the illegal trafficking of contraband cigarettes within the Eastern and Western District of Washington and the District of Idaho bi-state regions. With all the smuggling of illegal goods within the United States these days it’s a wonder that the smugglers receive such a light sentence.

The IRS Criminal Investigation Division, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Washington State Liquor Control Board conducted the investigation that lead to the arrest of the contraband cigarette trafficker’s. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington reported that, “Peter Mahoney, 54, received a sentence of 33 months prison for violations of the Contraband Cigarette Trafficking Act and Money Laundering.”

“Peter’s Wife, Peggy, 38, received a sentence of 3 years probation with 6 months of home detention based upon one count of contraband cigarette trafficking. Peter and Peggy Mahoney reside in Plummer, Idaho. Other conspirators Mark Van’t Hul, 44, received a sentence of two years probation for his participation transporting the Contraband Cigarettes; Mr. Van’t Hul lives in Havre, Montana. Lyle W. Conway and Lyle Shawn Conway have previously been sentenced to 2 years probation.”

Some smokers in Northeastern Wisconsin say the $1 tax increase on a pack of cigarettes could be enough to snuff out their habit, although many feel lawmakers are unfairly targeting them in an effort to raise revenue.

In the two-year $57.2 billion budget approved by the state Legislature Tuesday, the state tax on each pack of cigarettes would jump to $1.77 on Jan. 1, 2008 — making Wisconsin’s tobacco tax the 11th highest in the country. (more…)

An Akwesasne woman was stopped by Canadian authorities last week with a truck full of contraband cigarettes.According to Canadian authorities, an Akwesasne Mohawk Police officer noticed the woman driving over the Seaway International Bridge at around 5 a.m. last Tuesday, trying to shield her face from view of the officer. The officer watched the woman drive around the Brookdale Avenue traffic circle and then stopped her on International Road.

Officers from the Central St. Lawrence Valley RCMP detachment were called in and found 1,200 cartons of illegal cigarettes.

The driver, identified only as a 38-year-old resident of the Ontario side of Akwesasne is facing Excise Act charges. Her vehicle was also seized by Canadian authorities.

She is scheduled to appear in Cornwall court on November 22nd.