(COUNTY OF BRANT, ON) – The County of Brant Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) members while on patrol stopped a van for a violation under the Highway Traffic act on 05 October 2016 at approximately 2:50 p.m.
As a result of the traffic stop police located over 1400 lbs of raw leaf tobacco inside the blue 2002 Chevrolet express van. This tobacco could have potentially produced over 600,000 cigarettes, representing nearly $100,000 in provincial tobacco tax losses.
As a result of the investigation OPP have charged 76-year-old Charles VANBESIEN of the County of Brant with trafficking in contraband tobacco contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada.
He will appear in The Ontario Court of Justice in Brantford at a later date to answer to the charge.
Anyone with information about this or any incident in the County of Brant can call the County of Brant OPP at 1-888-310-1122. Should you wish to remain anonymous you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or leave an anonymous online message at www.crimestoppers-brant.ca where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.
