According to a recent report by Reason, the Middlesex County District Attorney's office and tax bureau recently released a press release stating that the owner of an e-cigarette store in Marlboroughughugh, Massachusetts pleaded guilty to three counts of attempted tax evasion. He was sentenced to six months in jail and five years of probation.
In 2020, Massachusetts became the first state to completely ban all flavored tobacco products. While violating this ban is only considered a misdemeanor, selling flavored tobacco products on the illegal market also constitutes a violation of state tax laws, which could result in harsher penalties. In Massachusetts, evading tobacco product taxes is a felony that can carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Prosecutors stated that the owner of an e-cigarette store regularly purchased e-cigarettes from out-of-state distributors between 2020 and 2022, evading $467,000 in taxes. Meeting minutes from the 2022 Marlboroughugh Health Committee meeting documented multiple instances of the store selling flavored products. For instance, in December 2021, a tobacco control manager observed the sale of flavored tobacco products in the store and discovered 300 disposable flavored e-cigarettes. In March 2022, Marlboroughugh police were sent to investigate suspicious activity in the store's parking lot, where they found customers able to purchase flavored e-cigarettes and pay in cash. These violations resulted in thousands of dollars in fines and the revocation of the store's license to sell nicotine and tobacco products.
According to reports, this case may be the first instance where someone has been sentenced to jail for selling untaxed flavored tobacco products. Additionally, at least two other related felony prosecutions are currently underway, with the possibility of more cases in the future.
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