MEDIA RELEASEFor Immediate Release State Auditor to Brief Press on Contraband Tobacco Seizure and Date of Sale(Jackson, Miss.) State Auditor Stacey Pickering will brief members of the press on the status of the contraband tobacco discovered in Mississippi earlier this year on Wednesday, October 14 at 10 a.m. A date for the public sale of the seized contraband will be announced at this event.
The location of the press conference will remain undisclosed until 5 p.m. today, Tuesday, October 13; however, to assist in making travel arrangements, the warehouse is located in Northeast Mississippi. Members of the press wishing to attend must be credentialed and will receive the address of the facility once credentials have been issued. To request credentials, please visit http://www.osa.ms.gov/presscredentials.pdf to complete the online form. You will be contacted at approximately 5 p.m. today with further instructions. The seizure of more than one million cartons of discount brand cigarettes is the largest known discovery of contraband tobacco in U.S. history. Elected as Mississippi’s State Auditor in 2007, Stacey Pickering (R) has recovered over $3 million in embezzled, misspent or misappropriated funds. He is a seventh generation Mississippian from Jones County. While serving as a State Senator from 2004-2007 he was recognized by the Mississippi Association of Realtors as Legislator of the Year and is credited for co-authorizing legislation allowing Mississippi to end law suit abuse. He was named by the American Legislative Exchange Council to the national policy task forces on Transportation and Homeland Security, and founded and was co-chairman of the Miss. Legislative Sportsman’s Caucus. Throughout his political career, Pickering has made tremendous strides in creating more accountability and transparency in government and continues to promote fiscal responsibility and the need for more efficiency and productivity in government. For more information on Stacey Pickering, visit www.osa.state.ms.us/auditors-bio.htm. ### |