Syed I. Bokhari, PACT Act Violation, Massachusetts 2022

BOSTON – A tobacco wholesaler from Connecticut has pleaded guilty to violating the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act. Syed I. Bokhari, 57, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, April 19, 2022 in federal court in Springfield before U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni who scheduled sentencing for July 28, 2022.

Bokhari owned and operated a wholesale supply business in Scranton, Pa., that sold smokeless tobacco to customers in Massachusetts. Between 2010 and June 5, 2012, Bokhari’s business shipped smokeless tobacco to customers in Massachusetts without ever filing the required statement with the Massachusetts tobacco tax administrator.

“By circumventing the law, Mr. Bokhari sold smokeless tobacco directly to consumers thereby cheating on his tax obligations,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. “Whether it is through underreporting taxable income or secreting taxable products to customers, tax fraud is a crime that we will continue to investigate – plain and simple.”

The charge of violating the PACT Act provides for a sentence of up to three years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Bokhari was indicted in October 2014, and subsequently charged in a superseding indictment in December 2015. The PACT Act is designed to prevent the evasion of state tobacco taxes on cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, requiring businesses to file a statement with the state tobacco tax administrator prior to shipping cigarettes or smokeless tobacco into that state.

The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Rollins, ATF SAC Ferguson, IRS-CI SAC Simpson, HSI SAC Millhollin, Massachusetts DOR Commissioner Snyder and Connecticut Department of Revenue Service Commissioner Mark D. Boughton. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex J. Grant and Christopher Morgan of Rollins’ Springfield Branch Office are prosecuting the case.

“The Department of Revenue’s partnerships with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations make it clear that we will pursue those who violate both federal and Massachusetts tax laws,” said Massachusetts Department of Revenue Commissioner Geoffrey E. Snyder.

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