Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has announced she plans to introduce “Australia’s toughest illicit tobacco laws”, which marks another escalation in the state’s battle against the illicit tobacco trade.

Under the proposed laws, Victoria Police and regulator Tobacco Licensing Victoria will be able to shut down tobacco shops if they are found to be selling illegal tobacco.

Whether or not these proposed laws have any major impact on Victoria’s “tobacco wars” will only be known in time.

But our research into a different drug in a different state in 2000 may help shed some light on how authorities can diffuse the current tensions.

Victoria Police’s Taskforce Lunar says it is investigating more than 125 fires across the state (most at businesses involved in selling tobacco) and has arrested more than 100 people in connection with the fires and related serious offending.

The violence has also spilled beyond shopfronts.

In January 2025, Katie Tangey was killed in the melbourne suburb of Truganina after a townhouse was set alight. Police said the offenders may have targeted the wrong address.

This is the sharp end of Australia’s tobacco crackdown.

Read more: Alleged tobacco kingpin Kazem ‘Kaz’ Hamad has been arrested in Iraq – what happens next?

Why is this happening?

A legal pack of cigarettes costs about $40–$60. A large share of that price is tax. Excise is now around $1.50 per........

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