NEW YORK: The head of a multimillion-dollar cigarette-smuggling ring was convicted Tuesday on 198 counts.
Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Dineen Riviezzo found Basel Ramadan, 44, guilty of charges related to flooding New York City and the Albany area with $55 million in untaxed smokes. He faces up to 30 years in prison.
“Not only did this enterprise put law-abiding businesses in New York at a competitive disadvantage, but it increased the possibility of violence,” Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.
