OPP discover $4.4 million worth of contraband tobacco inside tractor-trailer on Hwy. 401 in eastern Ontario

Ontario Provincial Police say 17,820 kilograms of contraband tobacco was discovered inside a tractor-trailer stopped on Hwy. 401 in eastern Ontario. (OPP/X)

A traffic complaint about a speeding tractor-trailer on Highway 401 in eastern Ontario resulted in the discovery of $4.4 million worth of contraband tobacco inside the vehicle, according to police.

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) say officers responded to a call about a vehicle in the eastbound lanes of Hwy. 401 near Shannonville Road at approximately 7 a.m. Tuesday.

A short time later, officers stopped the tractor-trailer near Joyceville Road in Kingston.

Police say the truck was escorted to the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) scales at Gananoque for a safety inspection.

“Documentation and other issues led to an inspection of the cargo,” police said in a media release Wednesday morning.

“Inside, OPP and MTO officers found the trailer was filled with over 17,820 kilograms of contraband, fine-cut tobacco, estimated to be worth approximately $4.4 million. That equates to a total federal and provincial tax loss of approximately $9.1 million.”

A 60-year-old man from Puslinch Township, near Cambridge, Ont., has been charged with trafficking contraband tobacco. The accused is scheduled to appear in court on September 2.

Police say the investigation by officers with the OPP Frontenac Detachment, the OPP Contraband Tobacco Enforcement Team and the Ministry of Transportation is continuing.