Press Releases
04/06/2023
Attorney General Tong Announces 3,000 Packages of Foreign Contraband Cigarettes Seized and Destroyed Following Settlement With U.S. Postal Service
(Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong announced today that approximately 3,000 packages of foreign contraband cigarettes were detected, seized, and destroyed in the first quarter of 2023 due to reforms enacted through a settlement between Connecticut, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, the City of New York and the U.S. Postal Service. Of those seized packages, 44 were destined for addresses in Connecticut.“We took action to force USPS to do its job to stop the flow of foreign contraband cigarettes into Connecticut and the United States. These early reports show our settlement provisions are working, resulting in the detection and destruction of thousands of smuggled cigarettes. Contraband cigarettes cost states hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost tax revenue and hinder smoking cessation efforts. We will continue to work alongside our partner states and the City of New York to closely monitor this settlement and ensure this important enforcement effort remains on the right track,” said Attorney General Tong.
The settlement, reached in August 2022, resolved allegations that USPS had, for over a decade, transported and delivered untaxed, foreign cigarettes to U.S. households in violation of federal law.
The settlement required USPS to commit to a series of reforms, including ending its former practice of returning to sender illegally mailed packages of cigarettes. The new policy requires USPS to seize and destroy cigarette packages, and to report the sender and recipient information to law enforcement, and to appoint a designated manager to oversee compliance with the settlement, among other provisions.
In the first quarter of 2023, USPS seized for destruction approximately 3,000 packages containing a total of 10,000 cartons of cigarettes shipped from overseas addresses in violation of U.S. law. The largest number — nearly 8,000 cartons — entered through the international postal facility at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Most shipments were mailed from China, Israel, and Russia and sent to addresses throughout New York City, Connecticut and the other plaintiff states. Many addressees received packages of cigarettes at commercial mail drops in sufficiently large quantities that indicated the cigarettes were intended for re-sale.
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Media Contact:
Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov
Consumer Inquiries:
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