Tag: illicit products

  • Lincoln, Neb. Vape Shop Crime a Growing Concern

    Lincoln, Neb. Vape Shop Crime a Growing Concern

    Credit: Global Image Archive

    Update: The Lincoln Police Department is investigating a break-in at another vape shop on Tuesday. LPD said officers were dispatched to an alarm and responding officers found a glass door was shattered and the suspects got inside the business, according to news reports.

    Lincoln, Nebraska has a problem with burglaries at vape shops. This weekend, employees at another Lincoln smoke shop arrived to work to find the front door shattered and thousands of dollars in vape products stolen.

    On Saturday at 10:30 a.m., Lincoln police were called to SJ’s Smoke Shop near 31st and O Streets after employees reported the front glass door shattered, according to news reports.

    Surveillance video shows two people using a rock to break the front door. LPD says they took multiple pipes and vape products worth roughly $5,000. The damage to the building is also estimated at $5,000.

    During an editorial on the rise in vape shop crime by Vapor Voice, Lincoln, Nebraska stood out as having a high number of vape shop crimes. Research suggests that in 2021 more than 40 vape shops burglaries occurred in Lincoln.

    A spokesperson for LPD said that vape shops often carry expensive products that are small and hard to trace. This makes vape shops, especially those carrying delta-8, CBD and other cannabis products, high value targets for criminals. The products are in high demand on the black market, LPD said.

    Richard Marianos, a senior law enforcement consultant and adjunct lecturer at Georgetown University, says regulatory constraints often have the unintended consequence of boosting crime rates, adding that taxes and flavor bans bring prohibition, and prohibition brings crime.

    “These regulatory actions mean a dramatic increase in street sales to kids, and that is what we have seen all over the United States,” said Marianos. “In terms of law enforcement, the issue is that there has been 150 percent increase in smash-and-grabs because of the difficulty of purchasing these products.”

  • Massachusetts Reports Rise in Illicit E-Cig Smuggling

    Massachusetts Reports Rise in Illicit E-Cig Smuggling

    Massachusetts law enforcement officials have reported seizing a sizable amount of banned and untaxed vaping products linked to cross-border smuggling last year. According to a new report by the Multi-Agency Illegal Tobacco Task Force, more than 213,000 electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products were seized by state police and members of the task force in 2021.

    “Inspectors and investigators are routinely encountering or seizing menthol cigarettes, originally purchased in surrounding states, and flavored electronic nicotine delivery products and cigars purchased from unlicensed distributors operating both within and outside the commonwealth,” the report states.

    The seizures of vaping products dwarfed those of untaxed cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco products by law enforcement agencies, according to news reports. Massachusetts banned the sale of flavored cigarettes and vaping products more than two years ago, but those products are still getting into the state through the blackmarket. The law imposed a 75 percent excise tax the wholesale cost of vaping products.

    Credit: Yurii Kibalnik

    The task force, which is overseen by the Department of Revenue, has partnered with federal officials to dismantle major cross-border smuggling operations and recover millions of dollars in unpaid tobacco and vaping product excise taxes. Under the new law, anyone caught bringing untaxed e-cigarettes or vaping products into the state can be fined $5,000 for a first offense and up to $25,000 for multiple violations.

    The provisions also allow police to seize untaxed vaping products as well as vehicles, boats and airplanes. The state collected more than $370 million in cigarette taxes alone in its last budget year, a 23 percent decline over the previous fiscal year, according to the Department of Revenue. The stae collected more than $13 million in taxes on vaping products.

    While many anti-nicotine groups have praised Massachusetts’ ban of flavored tobacco products, the ban is not the success its proponents make it out to be, according to Ulrik Boesen of the Tax Foundation. While a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that the sale of flavored tobacco in Massachusetts decreased more than in 27 control states in the wake of the state ban, the authors failed to consider the impact of cross-border trade.

    According to Boesen, increased sales in neighboring New Hampshire and Rhode Island almost completely made up for the decrease in Massachusetts. “The end result of the ban, in fact, is that Massachusetts is stuck with the societal costs associated with consumption, while the revenue from taxing flavored tobacco products is being raised in neighboring states,” Boesen wrote on the Tax Foundation’s website.

  • ITC Bans All Imports of Illicit Juul-Compatible Pods

    ITC Bans All Imports of Illicit Juul-Compatible Pods

    Credit: JHVEPhoto

    The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has issued a general exclusion order that bans the importation of any unauthorized cartridges compatible with the Juul vaping system that infringe Juul Labs’ patented product designs, including compatible flavored pods and refillable pods.

    This ruling follows a filing by Juul Labs submitted to the ITC on July 10, 2020, that sought a general exclusion order directed at all importers of unauthorized cartridges that copy Juul Labs’ patented pod designs without authorization.

    “Today’s ITC ruling represents a major victory against manufacturers of illicit vapor products who seek to bypass regulations and undermine efforts to create a more responsible marketplace for the category,” said Wayne Sobon, vice president, intellectual property at Juul Labs, in a statement.

    “In addition to targeting the importation of all infringing products, regardless of the brand, this sweeping action will provide the additional public benefit of helping rid the market of unauthorized Juul-compatible products that can be modified by the user, such as empty and refillable pods.”

  • Australia: More than $2 Million Worth of Vape Pens Seized

    Australia: More than $2 Million Worth of Vape Pens Seized

    Credit: Belyay

    Australian authorities have seized tens of thousands of nicotine vapes illegally being sold in the country over the past 18 months. Between July 2020 and December 2021, the New South Wales Department of Health seized more than 100,000 illegal vaping products, with a street value of more than $2 million.

    Since October, Australian vapers have been required to obtain a doctor’s prescription for nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and liquids. Doctors are supposed to prescribe the products only as a last resort when more proven quit treatments fail. The law changes were prompted by concerns about the health impacts of vaping, and data showing children are increasingly using the products.

    Over the past year, local public health units had been springing convenience stores, petrol stations and tobacconists who were selling vapes to children, enlisting undercover teenagers to attempt to purchase the products, according to news reports.

    Consumers who fail to include a nicotine prescription with their order will be subject to a fine of up to $222,000. The new system will work if enough doctors, pharmacists, smokers and vapers are willing to comply and are provided with sufficient information.

  • UK Retailers Being Warned About Illegal E-Cigarettes

    UK Retailers Being Warned About Illegal E-Cigarettes

    The UK government officials are warning e-cigarette and vaping retailers after trading officers discover a large number of illegal products. Vaping devices are highly regulated by the government to control the amount of nicotine available and have to be approved by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

    “They should contain no more than 2 per cent nicotine or hold more than two mL of liquid, equivalent to 600 puffs or a packet of cigarettes, according to a news report. “However, in a recent test purchasing exercise across the city to check on compliance, officers were able to buy illegal products at 74 retailers – some containing up to 3,500 puffs, almost six times above the legal limit.”

    Officials are now offering retailers the opportunity to contact Trading Standards for advice on their products with the proviso that compliance visits will be carried out in the New Year and any illegal products still on sale will be seized. The council have also been receiving a large number of complaints over the sale of these products to children and is asking parents with information and evidence to contact them.

    More information and an online form is available at https://liverpool.gov.uk/business/trading-standards/alcohol-and-tobacco-illegal-trading/ or you can email trading.standards@liverpool.gov.uk

  • Singapore Seizes $2 Million in Illegal Vape Pens

    Singapore Seizes $2 Million in Illegal Vape Pens

    More than $2 million worth of vaporizers, components, e-liquids and other illegal tobacco products have been seized in Singapore. Authorities are calling the discovery the “largest haul” in the city-state to date.

    Credit: Richie Chan

    Acting on a tip-off, officers from the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) inspected an industrial storage facility located north, towards the border with Malaysia. They discovered 10,057 vapes, 48,822 vaporizer components, and large quantities of vape juice, according to a press release.

    “This is the largest seizure haul of tobacco products by HSA, in terms of the volume and street value of e-vaporizers,” officials said in a statement, adding that the products had an estimated street value of $2,260,825. No arrests have been made but HSA said that three people were currently “assisting in investigations.” The authority also revealed that more than 170 vape raids were carried out between 2018 and 2020.

  • Malaysia’s Customs Seizes 1,276 Liters of Illegal E-Liquid

    Malaysia’s Customs Seizes 1,276 Liters of Illegal E-Liquid

    The Royal Malaysian Customs Department has seized RM2.7 million worth of e-liquid, which also carried RM273,480 in unpaid taxes. The KLIA Central Zone Enforcement Unit III personnel conducted an inspection on two containers from the United States in Northport, Port Klang, at 6pm on June 24.

    Central Zone Customs principal assistant director Datuk Zazuli Johan said the team found 1,276.24 liters of e-liquid suspected to contain nicotine that had been declared as “atomizer devices” (hardware) in the containers. The e-liquid was also found to have exceeded their expiration date, according to the Philippine Star.

    “We believe that the product would be repackaged before being distributed in the local market. The consignment was brought in without a valid import license and tax on it had not been paid,” he is quoted as saying in a statement on July 2, adding that e-liquid is classified as prohibited merchandise in Malaysia under the Customs (Prohibition on Imports) Order 2017.

  • U.S. FDA Warns 13 Companies for Illegal E-Liquids

    U.S. FDA Warns 13 Companies for Illegal E-Liquids

    On March 12, the U.S. FDA issued warning letters to 13 firms who manufacture and sell unauthorized e-liquids. The regulatory agency advised the companies that selling products lacking a premarket authorization is illegal, and therefore cannot be sold or distributed in the U.S.

    Credit: Isaiah Rustad

     

    The firms did not submit a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) by the Sept. 9, 2020 deadline, according to a press release from the FDA. The firms receiving warning letters are VapinUSA-WI, LLC d/b/a VapinUSA, Vapor Springs, LLC, Vapor Cigs, LLC, Vegas Vapor Emporium, LLC, Vape 911, The Philosopher’s Stone, LLC, The Clean Vape, Tooters Vape Shop, Cloudchasor LLC, Boardwalk Elixir, LLC, Dieselbycg-Hometown Vape Lounge, Blue Lab Vapors LLC, and Revolution Vapor LLC.

    “While each warning letter issued today cites specific products as examples, collectively these companies have listed a combined total of more than 75,000 products with the FDA,” the statement reads.

    Following an initial set of such warning letters announced earlier this year, FDA has continued to issue additional warning letters for products that failed to submit a PMTA.

    Per a court order, applications for premarket review for certain deemed new tobacco products on the market as of Aug. 8, 2016—including e-liquids—were required to be submitted to FDA by Sept. 9, 2020. For companies that submitted applications by that deadline, FDA generally intends to continue to defer enforcement for up to one year pending FDA review, unless there is a negative action taken by FDA on the application.