Just 5 days ago (6/28/13), the owner of RTS Vapes made a post on the e-cigarette forum, saying that 3 federal agents from the department of homeland security visited his home and facility.
An agent asked the CEO and President Randy Slabney if he sold little vials with flavor and nicotine in them – Randy answered “No”.
They claim they will try to get an arrest warrant from the US attorney for lying to a federal agent.
Randy said that the agents then went to his facility and seen that they produce flavorless liquid nicotine and still think that it is the same as flavored.
I guess this is a new way for the federal government to go after companies.
Others on the forum wondered what we all are thinking at this point… Nicotine nor flavors are illegal, so what’s the problem?
Randy Slabney explains:
They are not saying it is illegal to sell flavored nicotine. They are saying I am guilty of lying to a federal agent because I said we do not sell it which is true. The department of homeland security does not know the difference between flavored and concentrated flavorless nicotine. There were around 20 other questions asked about the production of pure nicotine being a risk to the country because it is a poison.
Randy went on to saying that they also had documentation of customer invoices that could only have been obtained from Volusion by a subpoena. He then called Volusion, their shopping cart, and Volusion verified they were served with a federal subpoena from a federal district court judge to provide all customer invoices for the last 30 days.
If that doesn’t take the cake, Randy then reports that just a week before, a big tobacco company offered a buyout. He declined the offer.
Leave it to DHS not to know what they are talking about. ALL they really need to do is read(IF they can) the material on the ‘RTS Vapes’ website and they can get all the information they need. I’m guessing, though, that the gov’t is trying to figure out a way to ‘TAX’ all this.(legally or illegally) People are breaking away from smoking to vaping and the tobacco companies(big political party contributors) are starting to hurt. Face it…anything that the public likes and pays for…the gov’t has to get their grubby mitts on.
“Land of thge free”;
MY BIG OL BUTT!!
We can’t hve folks quit smoking! How can we tax the hell out of what isn’t being bought?
They need time to get legislation written, to tax the inhalation of any and all vapors.
They are gonna have a field day next Thanksgiving.
“Mmm smell that turkey”
*Knock, knock, knock.*
“That will be 10 cents per sniff plaese”.
P.S. My mom’s been a smoker for three decades. she bought a Vape thingy today. The guy at the smoke shop told her about the Feds moving on Vape already. Classic Uncle Sam.
Sorry about the typos. Getting ready for work and typing at the same time.