VANCOUVER – A Vancouver man who smuggled cigarettes from Taiwan and posed as a customs broker has been given an 18-month conditional sentence after pleading guilty to the crimes.
The Canadian Border Services Agency says during proceedings in B.C. Supreme Court earlier this month, Colin Li Hsin Cheng was also ordered to pay almost $ 11,000 in restitution to his fraud victims.
The agency says the case began on July 8 when border services officers at the Port of Vancouver discovered 149 cartons of cigarettes imported from Taiwan in a container of used magazines.
The CBSA says a search warrant executed at Cheng’s home on July 30 provided evidence that Cheng imported nine shipments of undeclared cigarettes between 2007 and 2008, amounting to more than 1,100 cartons.
During the search, investigators also learned that Cheng had been acting as an unlicensed customs broker on behalf of other importers of commercial goods.
The CBSA says Cheng had submitted false values on customs entries for shipments including cabinets, clothing, hardware and other goods in order to pay lower duties and taxes while still charging his clients the full amounts.
Local news from metronews.ca/vancouver
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