Philip Morris USA (PM USA) filed lawsuits yesterday against seven China-based online retailers for selling versions of the company’s Marlboro® brand cigarettes to California consumers — the first time a U.S. company has sued a China-based website for selling cigarettes to American consumers. PM USA also filed suit against eight retailers who recently sold counterfeit versions of the company’s Marlboro® brand cigarettes to Los ... Jump to full article >>

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the Tobacco Institute of Southern Africa (TISA) will today destroy illicit and counterfeit cigarettes, estimated to be worth R100 million if it were to be sold legally with all excise duties being paid to government. The destruction operation in Springs, which started on Tuesday earlier this week, has seen over 100 million cigarette sticks being destroyed. They were seized during various attempts to b ... Jump to full article >>

Seven men have been arrested and around eight million counterfeit cigarettes, hidden in a shipment of under-floor heating pipes have been seized by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). The cigarettes, thought to have originated in China, were seized following a multi-agency raid on commercial premises in the Forkhill area of south Armagh yesterday morning. HMRC, assisted by the PSNI, searched a 40′ container where they uncovered the cigarette ... Jump to full article >>

Philip Morris USA (PM USA) filed lawsuits today against eight retailers for selling counterfeit versions of the company’s Marlboro® brand cigarettes in New York and New Jersey. These lawsuits are part of the company’s on-going efforts to stop the sale of counterfeit cigarettes and the unauthorized use of PM USA’s trademarks. “These lawsuits highlight that counterfeit cigarette traffickers continue to operate in the New York metropolitan ... Jump to full article >>

August 30, 2009 – RICHMOND, Va. — After Philip Morris USA filed a lawsuit against three Mastic, N.Y., retail stores on the Poospatuck reservation, approximately 300 cartons of counterfeit Marlboro cigarettes were seized. The Mastic retailers were among a group of nine stores in New York and New Jersey that PM USA sued for selling counterfeit versions of the company’s brand cigarettes. “The sale of counterfeit cigarettes unde ... Jump to full article >>