Good afternoon. I would like to thank the witnesses for being here today to talk about the smuggling that is happening in Quebec and across Canada.
Most of my questions are for Mr. Cabana. You said that over 900 people have been prosecuted. When prosecuting people for tobacco smuggling, the Crown prosecutor can choose to proceed by summary conviction or indictment. Do you have any statistics on the number of people who were charged on summary conviction, and those who were indicted?
You said that you target the upper levels of organizations. We know that no business can operate without clients or buyers. I agree that you do need to dismantle the upper levels of these organizations. But are any consumers ever brought before the courts? Are there any penalties that dissuade consumers from buying illegal tobacco products?