Five men accused of smuggling cigarettes through the area were arrested recently, state Taxation and Finance Department officials say.
The arrests came in two separate incidents.
In the first, Rodney D. Tiemyer, 41, of Newport, Ky., was pulled over June 5 on Interstate 86 in Ellery by state troopers during a commercial vehicle road check. Tiemyer, driving a truck registered in Ohio, was allegedly carrying more than 8,000 cartons of unstamped and untaxed cigarettes.
A week later, four men driving two vehicles were pulled over on Interstate 86 in Ellicott. Matthew John Bishop, 42, of Ironwood, Mich., Joseph Allan Fish, 41, of Baraga, Mich., David John Leclaire, 52, of Lanse, Mich., and Richard S. Mayo, 36, of Richmond, Ky., are accused of hauling almost 7,000 cartons of illegal cigarettes, reportedly purchased at a nearby Indian reservation.
All five face felony charges of possession of unstamped cigarettes and attempt to evade the cigarette tax. If convicted, they face four to seven years in prison.
Sgt. David Hendrick of the State Police at Jamestown said cigarette smugglers typically pick up untaxed cigarettes on Indian reservations in the area and smuggle them out of state.
He said police have seen a recent increase in smuggling after several quiet years.
‘‘It seems like it’s picked up in the last couple of months,’’ Hendrick said. ‘‘We used to have a big problem with it years ago when Michigan didn’t have tax stamps. It slowed down for three or four years, but we’re starting to have a lot more activity.’’
Hendrick said the increase may be due to increasing cigarette taxation. He said some smugglers have been caught during routine checks or traffic stops, while others have been pulled over after state police were contacted by tax officials.
‘‘We’ve had a couple where taxation has called us, said they had a car under surveillance and asked us to stop them,’’ Hendricks said.
The unstamped cigarettes in both cases were seized by tax agents. After the arrests, Robert L. Megna, Taxation and Finance Department commissioner, issued a warning to smugglers.
‘‘Our agents and the state police aggressively pursue and prosecute people who attempt to profit in the illegal cigarette trade. Individuals who purchase and transport bulk quantities of unstamped cigarettes for redistribution to others violate the law and cheat honest citizens of legitimate tax revenue,’’ Megna said.
