Crime & Safety
Two Found Guilty of Cigarette Smuggling
The Chicago men were pulled over in Will County. Police found 4,000 packs of cigarettes with Missouri tax stamps in their car.
Two Chicago men who were pulled over in Will County in October 2013 were found guilty last week of smuggling cigarettes over state lines, the Joliet Herald-News reports.
Ellis M. Cowart, 71, and Horace C. Mackey, 65, were found guilty of possession of contraband cigarettes and transportation of contraband cigarettes and could face up to five years in prison, according to the article. Authorities pulled them over in Will County on Oct. 25, 2013, and found more than 4,000 packs of cigarettes with Missouri tax stamps in their vehicle.
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“Because of the high price of cigarettes in Chicago, it was their desire to give people in their neighborhood some relief from the onerous taxes imposed by Cook County and the city of Chicago,” Judge Edward Burmila said.
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