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$104,000 worth of unmarked cigarettes spill onto roadway

Police investigation revealed that a pickup truck hauling a trailer had collided with a tractor trailer unit
cigarettes smokes
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NEWS RELEASE
ONTARIO PROVINCIAL POLICE
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On Nov. 23, 2017, at approximately 1 p.m., officers from the Kapuskasing Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) were advised of a motor vehicle collision on Highway 11, in Williamson Township, west of Kapuskasing, Ont.

Police investigation revealed that a pickup truck hauling a trailer had collided with a tractor trailer unit which had caused unmarked cigarettes to spill from the trailer onto the roadway. Neither driver sustained any injuries.

Officers seized the trailer with the unmarked cigarettes and impounded the motor vehicle. The total estimated street value of the cigarettes is approximately $104,000.

The driver of the pickup truck, Luke Penasse, 60 years of age from Sturgeon Falls, Ont., has been charged with the following offences:
    •    Two counts of possess unmarked cigarettes for sale contrary to section 29(1) of the Tobacco Tax Act (TTA)
    •    Attempt to pass - roadway not clear - approaching traffic contrary to section 148(8)(a) of the Highway Traffic Act of Ontario (HTA)

The accused is scheduled to attend the Ontario Court of Justice in Kapuskasing, Ont. on April 11, 2018 to answer to the charges.

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