Former taxman jailed over tobacco bribes

AS A former federal policeman and then a Tax Office investigator, Philip James Roper was used to being trusted.
But, motivated by greed, he breached that trust - and tarnished the reputation of his colleagues - by taking bribes from illegal tobacco producers, a judge said yesterday.
A County Court jury convicted Roper, 52, of dishonestly asking for a benefit, dishonestly receiving a benefit and theft. He pleaded guilty to dishonestly receiving a benefit and abuse of public office. Judge Joe Gullaci said in sentencing that Roper, who had spent nine years with the federal police before joining the Tax Office, met Jimmy Wang, involved in the chop-chop industry, at the Gotham City brothel. Roper asked Wang for the names and addresses of other chop-chop sellers and said he would look after him.
The offences occurred between June 2001 and mid-2004. Wang believed that the arrangement was beneficial because it would remove competitors, Judge Gullaci said. The information Wang provided also allowed Roper to steal tobacco leaf and cutting machines, which were sold and the profits taken by Roper. Roper also stole five 100-kilogram bales of tobacco leaf from a Dandenong property. These were sold and he shared in the profits.
He also stalled a prosecution of a woman who had sold chop-chop at the Caribbean Gardens Markets by telling his colleagues that her address could not be determined. The woman's husband had also been selling chop-chop at a supermarket in Frankston North.
Judge Gullaci called Roper's crimes an ''abuse of trust and power'' and said Roper was motivated by the lure of easy money, free meals, meeting in hotels and being feted by criminals. ''But at the bottom of it, your motivation … was greed.''
Roper was jailed for 2½ years but will be released on a recognisance order of $1000 after 14 months.

Wrightsville Beach to discuss smoking ban

Wrightsville Beach town officials will hold a public hearing Thursday to discuss instituting a smoking ban on the beach strand – and they're expecting a crowd.
The meeting, which will be held at 6 p.m. in the town's Public Safety Building to accommodate for numbers, will be a forum for supporters and opponents to air their opinions and to listen to the board's thoughts on the ban.

If passed, Wrightsville Beach would be the first beach in North Carolina to adopt the ban, joining the likes of Surfside Beach and Atlantic Beach in South Carolina.

In 2010, the Board of Aldermen voted down the ban 3-2. Board members were reluctant to pass the ban because of questions about how to enforce it.

Enforcement continues to be a point of contention. Town Manager Bob Simpson said whenever a town creates an ordinance it needs to be able to enforce it.

"As soon as you create an ordinance with a fine associated with it, which this would, it is expected to be enforced," he said. "So it puts us and law enforcement in a bad position."

Supporters of the ban say signage, peer pressure and overall awareness will be enough to enforce the ban, believing it would not require extra efforts by law enforcement. Sean Ahlum, chairman of the Cape Fear chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, said peer pressure works.

"In Santa Monica, Calif., which is a smoke-free beach, police just casually mention (the ordinance) to someone who is smoking, and they put it out," Ahlum said. "Most people want to follow the rules."

Blue Ribbon award for smoke-free food centres

Ten food centres around the island have voluntarily removed their demarcated smoking zones as part of a Health Promotion Board (HPB) programme to encourage a smoke-free environment.

They were recognised by the HPB yesterday under a Blue Ribbon initiative for their commitment. The board aims to encourage 20 per cent of the 107 food centres islandwide to be smoke-free by next year.

The Blue Ribbon initiative is part of the larger smoke-free movement that the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region has embarked on. Singapore is the first country in the region to adopt this initiative on a nationwide scale.

"While Singapore has one of the lowest smoking prevalence in the world, recent trends suggest a rise in the prevalence, although the vast majority of Singaporeans are non-smokers," said Dr Amy Khor, Minister of State for Health.

Statistics from the HPB show that the prevalence of smoking among adults in Singapore has risen from 12.6 per cent in 2004 to 14.3 per cent in 2010.

Dr Khor added that this bottom-up approach - which engages ordinary Singaporeans to step forward and promote tobacco-free living - is one of the ways to build such smoke-free environments.

Posters will be placed around the 10 food centres to inform the public of the smoke-free policy.

"In addition to providing signages, posters and banners to distinguish them as health promoting premises for Singaporeans keen to visit smoke-free markets and food centres, HPB's health ambassadors, who are trained to help smokers quit smoking, will also be deployed at various community touchpoints island-wide," HPB chief executive officer Ang Hak Seng said.

The HPB will work with more hawker centres and coffee shops to encourage them to support the movement.

It will also train grassroots organisations and health ambassadors who will go around neighbourhoods to promote a smoke-free lifestyle and encourage voluntary no-smoking zones at void decks and common corridors.

Town top of illegal cigarette table

Smokers in a Northern Ireland town were puffing more illegal cigarettes than anyone else in the UK at the end of last year, research has found.

Two out of every three packs bought in Newtownabbey between October and December originated from the black market, according to the study.

Lisburn ranked second in the UK-wide survey commissioned by tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris, with 43% of cigarettes consumed in the city coming from illicit sources.

Crawley (31.6%), Coventry (30.3%) and London (28.5%) were the next three ranked in the top five.

Criminal gangs are known to target a town or city and flood it with illicit packets before moving their racket to the next location. This could account for the high levels in Newtownabbey and Lisburn last year.

The Exchequer loses millions every year as a result of duty evasion on black market tobacco.

According to the analysis of the last quarter of 2011, the problem is on the rise.

Almost 15% of cigarettes smoked across the UK between October and December did not have duty paid, compared with just over 10% in the previous three months.

The illicit trade includes counterfeit and genuine cigarettes smuggled into the UK without paying tax and ones manufactured and sold in the country without telling the taxman.

Counterfeits of UK cigarette brands are manufactured mainly in the Far East, with China one of the primary sources.

Leicester man facing felony marijuana charges

A 41-year-old Leicester man is facing a felony charge after his son — a kindergarten student — allegedly went to school smelling of marijuana.

According to a release from the Livingston County Sheriff’s office, Deputy Gene Chichester, the full-time school resource officer at the York Central School District, investigated the complaint of a kindergarten student coming to class with the odor of marijuana on his clothing.

Chichester and another deputy met with the child’s father, Mark Biondolillo, at his home in Leicester, and received permission to search the house after allegedly detecting a strong odor of marijuana.

The deputies discovered more than 35 ounces of marijuana packaged for sale, more than 100 plants in the growing stage, two separate growing rooms with equipment in each to grow marijuana, and an unspecified amount of money.

Biondolillo was charged with second-degree criminal possession of marijuana, a class D felony, unlawfully growing cannabis and endangering the welfare of a child. He was arraigned and held on bail.

The child is now in the custody of his mother.

Talks start on Indiana smoking ban compromise

A leading supporter of Indiana’s statewide smoking ban bill says it shouldn’t prevent cities and counties from adopting tougher restrictions.

Republican Rep. Eric Turner of Cicero said Monday that he didn’t support a provision added to the bill last week by the Senate that would block any new local smoking ordinances. That is one of several changes senators made in watering down the statewide ban.

Senators also added exemptions for bars, charity gambling operations, veterans’ homes and nursing homes. The House earlier approved a ban exempting casinos and allowing an 18-month exemption for bars.

House and Senate negotiators are working on reaching a compromise agreement by the end of this week, when legislative leaders are planning to adjourn this year’s session.

Breaking the addiction: wave goodbye to smoking

The harmful effects of smoking are well known. But knowing the risks of smoking and the benefits of stopping doesn't make it any easier to quit.

Quitting smoking is a serious commitment that requires devotion and support from friends and family. The process must be centered around your lifestyle and daily routines to ensure the addiction is kicked for good.

Don't be ashamed to acknowledge the difficulty of this task or ask for help. Before you begin the journey to stop smoking, educate yourself on what to expect and strategies for getting through challenges. Here are a few tips to help you get started: Smoking is an addiction. Don't underestimate the power of cigarettes. Each stick is a highly efficient nicotine-delivery mechanism. Smoking alters the structure and function of your brain so it constantly craves the alertness and calm produced by nicotine.

Your addiction takes many forms. Cigarettes generate two types of addiction, physical and psychological. Your body is physically dependent on nicotine, but smoking has also become a comforting habit. Cigarettes are associated with specific people, places, activities, even emotions. Physical cravings are magnified by these mental urges.

Ease your reliance by using products like Nicorette gum. Nicorette gradually weans you by providing a controlled amount of nicotine to your system without the harmful toxins, tar, carcinogens or carbon monoxide found in cigarettes.

Address your psychological dependence. The brain has already linked certain routines with smoking. You must realize these daily triggers and change your response. Instead of reaching for a cigarette on a morning break, take a nice walk around the building. Replace after-meal cigarettes with a glass of water or favorite dessert.

Smoking cigarettes damages your body, but it is reversible. Before giving in to a craving, remember that your heart and lungs are already healthier.

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