EMPORIA, Va. (WRIC) — Virginia State Police have arrested a man in Emporia for his alleged illegal transportation of cigarettes across the country.
On Wednesday, June 7, state troopers received a tip from the U.S. Marshal Service that a vehicle entering Virginia from North Carolina may have been trafficking cigarettes illegally.
Officers located the vehicle as it pulled into the Relax Inn in Emporia. According to police, a man — now identified as 57-year-old Youzhen Chen of Woodside, New York — exited the vehicle and entered a hotel room.
Cases of cigarettes matching the description provided by U.S. Marshals were clearly visible in the back of the vehicle, according to police.
Officers made contact with Chen and were granted consent to search the vehicle. Following the search, police seized 1050 cartons of untaxed cigarettes with an estimated value of $52,500 in Virginia — and an estimated value of $126,000 in New York.
Chen was arrested and charged with transporting untaxed cigarettes across state lines. He was taken to Southside Regional Jail and received no bond.
