Government will not return seized tobacco product

It has been three months since the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission and RCMP seized tobacco products from the Montana First Nation and charges have yet to be laid.

Lynn Hutchings-Mah, spokesperson for the AGLC, which is the primary lead organization, said the government investigation is still ongoing and she would not speculate as to when it would conclude.

“We’re still looking into the matter to make a determination if there’s any criminal charges,” said Sgt. Tim Taniguchi, with the K-Division of the RCMP.

However, Montana First Nation, Montana Chief Carolyn Buffalo and Rainbow Tobacco Company are not waiting for the outcome of the investigation. They have gone ahead with legal action. The three parties have filed a $1.5 million legal suit.

 “We also want the value of the goods seized,” said Rob Dickson, executive director for Rainbow Tobacco Company, located in Kahnawake First Nation in Quebec.
The government has responded with a statement of defense in answer to legal action.

Chady Mousterah, legal counsel for all three parties, expects to proceed with litigation as the province has not released the cigarettes.

Moustareh said the legal process will be slow and he expects there will be parties seeking intervener status in the court action because of the constitutional issues involved.

“I cannot foresee an outcome in less than a couple of years,” he said.

 At the heart of the matter is whether the province has the authority to seize tobacco from First Nations if that tobacco bears federal duty stamps but not provincial demarcations. First Nations land is federal land.
Dickson has been selling his product without any difficulties in Ontario and Quebec. However, his move west has brought complications.

Not only have 14 million cigarettes been seized from the Montana First Nation, but tobacco he shipped to Saskatchewan and British Columbia has also been apprehended by provincial authorities.

While Dickson is working with Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations on tobacco bylaws that would supersede provincial legislation, he said his focus will remain in Alberta.

“We will be concentrating our legal action in Alberta,” said Dickson.

Dickson met with chiefs in Calgary last month to discuss possible tobacco bylaws on First Nations in Alberta. Whether such bylaws would be retroactive and if they would have an impact on the tobacco seized on the Montana First Nation is unclear.

“That’s an issue to be litigated . . . . There’s no clear answer to it whether it be retroactive or not, but certainly it would allow the trade,” said Mousterah. He noted that bylaws “would clarify any grey areas and prohibit the enforcement of the provincial legislation,”
Rainbow Tobacco products were seized from a Quonset on the Montana First Nation by the AGLC on Jan. 5 and are being held in an undisclosed secured facility.