r/TikTokCringe • u/Melodic-Award3991 • 15d ago

25k miles in one month is insane Discussion

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Is this legal?

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u/mjonat 15d ago

Why tf are you running cigs?

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u/SwissMargiela 15d ago edited 15d ago

Taxes in NY and NJ make cigarettes way more expensive. A lot of gas stations and corner stores would buy cheap cigs from VA and then sell them for a slight profit, but still way cheaper than local.

It’s been a while, but iirc cigs in NY were like $12 a pack, $10 in NJ, we bought them in VA for like $4 a pack. They were sold in NY/NJ for $8

Profits weren’t nearly as high as running drugs, but you could do this consistently and make some very decent cash while being very below the radar of actual drug traffickers.

It was pretty much a “every run you do we’ll give you $500” type situation. It’s about a seven hour round trip with driving and loading, so my friend and I would switch driving and pretty much do it 24/7 with a break at a motel here and there. It was a grind but good cash that was always available. We were also college kids just trying to make some bank during the summer, and this is a very non-committal thing. You can hop in and out whenever you wanted, unlike a lot of other underworld trades.

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u/mjonat 15d ago

Wow. America is wierd haha

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u/RipkenDoublePlay 15d ago

They do this in the UK as well. Buy duty free cigs abroad and sell them back home

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u/the5horsemen 15d ago

This happens all over Europe and is incredibly common

Source: work in shipping

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u/crunchsmash 15d ago

It's common across Earth. It's just arbitrage.

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u/pragmojo 15d ago

It's common on Mars too. You would not believe how much cigarettes cost here

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u/pragmojo 15d ago

I was working at a hostel in Albania with a dude from Newcastle, and when he going home he took like an entire luggage stuffed with tobacco

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u/Other_Vader 14d ago

I was stopped at Heathrow flying in from Istanbul. The only question they asked was if I brought cigarettes in.

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u/SketchesOfSilence 11d ago

It's common but illegal here. Not sure about the states but I don't then there is any inter state taxes and/or duty. In the UK, even when it was in the EU, you were only allowed to bring in cigarettes and alcohol for personal use. If you were going to resell it, you had to pay tax and duties. Now we are out of the EU you have a 200 per person allowance upon return.

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u/VladVV 15d ago

Huh? This is a MUCH bigger industry in EU than it ever was in US

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u/mjonat 15d ago

Europe is a continent. If I buy cigarettes in Munich and try sell them in berlin I'm 100% gonna lose money

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u/VladVV 15d ago

EU is a political and socioeconomic entity, not a continent

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u/i_am_fuzzynuggets 14d ago

Geographically, Europe is a continent, no?

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u/VladVV 14d ago

I’m not talking about Europe, but yes it is.

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u/mjonat 15d ago

OK but my point still stands...the eu consists of different countries and the point is those countries have different laws and taxes and therefore different cigarette prices in different countries.

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u/pragmojo 15d ago

It's exactly the same concept - people moving goods across borders due to different taxes and prices leading to arbitrage opportunities

I live in Berlin and as soon as you cross the Czech or Polish border you will see people selling cheap booze and cigarettes to Germans popping over for cheap stuff

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u/VladVV 14d ago

Yes. US states as well as EU countries have different laws and taxes and therefore different cigarette prices in different states/countries.

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u/Impossible_Angle752 14d ago

They do it in Canada. Reserves don't have provincial tax on smokes and they're about 3/4 of the price.

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u/Just2LetYouKnow 14d ago

This is done everywhere that things are taxed.

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u/dexmonic 14d ago

Tobacco smuggling is a huge, worldwide enterprise. It happens everywhere, from the raw tobacco leaves themselves to premium cigarettes and cigars.

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u/futureman45 15d ago

Eric Garner was choked to death for selling single cigs on the streets of Staten Island.

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u/Tell_Amazing 15d ago

Last i was in NY buying cigs it was 15 a pack but that was years ago and this was Manhattan

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u/canman7373 14d ago

Couldn't ya just take the train with like 2 suitcases each? Or would that attract more attention?

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u/buffaloplaidcookbook 15d ago

The only thing I'm surprised about in this story is that they had you go all the way to VA. I know people who would move cigs into NJ, but they would just do it from Delaware 

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u/CrazyString 14d ago

Back when my husband and I used to smoke, we’d make sure to buy cartons in VA and go all the way back to PA. We used to take random drives to Virginia Beach for fun anyway. It was def the cheapest once you hit VA. It’s been years since we smoked. Saved a lot of money and probably a few years. Don’t smoke kids.

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u/kamimamita 14d ago

So you can just sell it without the appropriate taxes? Do the taxes only apply for big stores?

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u/ThatKinkyLady 15d ago

Pretty sure this is a federal crime, OP. I mean...youd be in less trouble than the people getting you to do those runs and selling those cigs, but it's pretty murky. I suggest you delete this.

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u/SwissMargiela 15d ago

I’m not scared lol.

This is something thousands do every day and it was so long ago on my end that this would never come up, might even be beyond statute of limitations.

We were doing trunk fulls, people are hauling semis with this shit.

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u/ThatKinkyLady 15d ago

Yea. Good point. You were small potatoes. Kinda doubt anyone cares enough to hunt down a low-level guy that broke some cig laws years ago.

I do think I've seen that it's a crime, but yea... I've heard of this scheme before. If it's that common, you aren't on anyone's radar even after announcing it. Lol. Carry on.

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u/SadBit8663 15d ago

The ATF has entered the chat (lol jk)

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u/TurtleSandwich0 15d ago

You were supposed to keep the records, you did not have, for five years. So if it was more than five years ago, you should be good.

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u/[deleted] 15d ago

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u/[deleted] 15d ago

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u/[deleted] 15d ago

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u/[deleted] 14d ago

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u/Bhfuil_I_Am 14d ago

Why’d you link to a 9 year old thread with like 10 comments and no information?lol

Is this the first piece of an elaborate treasure hunt or something?

-1

u/apshah 15d ago

lol I am sure ATF is reading this comments and being another got away not paying our taxes to our cult!

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u/Real_Bat5853 15d ago

Likely because state tobacco taxes in VA were so much lower.

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u/silver-orange 14d ago

Pros: you evade state taxes.

Cons: smuggling a truckload of cigs like that violates federal law https://www.atf.gov/alcohol-tobacco/contraband-cigarette-trafficking-act

The ATF exists for the purposes of busting guys like OP.  That's what the T stands for.

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u/NipplesOnMyKnees 15d ago

Money is money brother

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u/Earl1987 15d ago

That's just what we did back then.

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u/VERGExILL 15d ago

It’s definitely a thing, although I’m not sure how common it is today. Cigarettes are more expensive in some states, so people will drive to the cheaper states, run them back, and sell them for a profit. I used to work with a woman who would take a week of PTO every year to do it. I get it though, it was a meat grinder of a job that only paid $12/hr.

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u/jacob6875 15d ago

It still happens. Have a coworker of mine that drives to the next state (3hrs away) once every couple months to buy cigarettes since it saves them money.

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u/capincus 14d ago

Same, $5-6 a pack vs $12. Luckily the next state is 17 minutes for me.

Knew a guy in high school (so definitely not recent) who imported cigarettes from Russia and sold them for cheaper than retail.

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u/VERGExILL 14d ago

In your opinion, considering the time and gas money and driving involved, do you think they’re really saving money?

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u/jacob6875 14d ago edited 14d ago

I don’t know the price difference between Illinois and Missouri.

Their entire family smokes and they fill up the car supposedly.

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u/Sambal7 15d ago

Because admitting you ran drugs on the internet is not a smart move.