How criminals are evading inspectors
Victorian authorities have implemented new closure powers to crack down on the state's illicit tobacco market. The enforcement has led to the temporary shutdown of dozens of black-market retailers, forcing some syndicates to alter their operating hours.
Why it matters
This represents a significant escalation in the state's effort to dismantle a violent and lucrative criminal industry that has plagued local communities.
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Share A A A Black-market tobacco shops are scrambling to come to grips with a new crackdown by state licensing authorities, which can now shut down operators for up to 90 days, with the crime syndicates forced in some areas to sell illicit cigarettes only outside business hours when inspectors are rostered off.
Victoria’s illicit tobacco market – long regarded as the largest, most lucrative and most violent in the country – is now experiencing its first significant shocks after the state government implemented long-delayed “shut-down” powers that came into effect on September 9.
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