Aurora Russi, 70, pleads guilty following Lara tobacconist raid

An elderly shop assistant has found herself swept up in the crackdown on the state’s illegal tobacco war, after police seized thousands of illegal tobacco products from a shop in Lara.

Lara Giftware and Accessories in Centreway now displays a sign indicating the store is permanently closed. Picture: Alison Wynd

An elderly shop assistant has found herself swept up in the crackdown on the state’s illegal tobacco war.

Lara’s Aurora Russi, 70, appeared in Geelong Magistrates Court on Friday and pleaded guilty to two charges related to the possession and sale of illegal tobacco.

Two further charges were struck out.

The court heard Russi was employed as retail assistant at Lara Giftware and Accessories, which traded as The Smoke Shop, on the Centreway in Lara.

The store was allegedly hit by molotov cocktails on February 24 this year, and was raided by police two days later.

Russi was behind the counter during the raid.

Police found 11,000 cigarettes and tobacco sticks behind or in the vicinity of the counter, the court was told, along with 82 e-cigarette vapes and 860 small bags of loose tobacco.

Another 15,000 cigarettes or tobacco sticks were found in the kitchen area.

Police also seized a CCTV hard drive, $3380 in cash in the store’s safe and handwritten ledgers detailing the sale of illicit tobacco, the court heard.

The store’s smashed window after it was ramraided. Picture: Alison Wynd

As the search went on, customers tried to gain entry to the shop looking to buy tobacco.

In all, the lost duties on the illegal goods reached more than $36,200, the court heard.

The Geelong Advertiser understands the store’s owner was also charged following the raid.

Days after the police raid, a car was driven into the front of the shop and it was targeted with a molotov cocktail again.

The court heard since March 24 last year, 34 retail outlets and businesses in Melbourne have been the victim of arson attacks and firebombings, as crime gangs fight over Victoria’s lucrative black market for tobacco.

The war, linked to two suspected Middle Eastern organised crime gangs, has led to the formation of Taskforce VIPER, which the court heard has executed 56 search warrants.

The court heard Russi was cooperative with police and, when interviewed, said she knew the sale of tobacco she had been selling was illegal.

In her written statement, Russi said she had been employed at the store for 16 to 18 months and paid on a cash-in-hand basis.

Russi’s lawyer, Shane Balkin, told the court his client had never been in trouble with the law before.

“Unfortunately she has come into contact with police at a very late stage in her life … it’s been a sobering experience for her,” Mr Balkin said.

He noted that Russi’s role in the offending was as a casual employee, who was making a “limited amount” from the sale of the illicit goods.

Mr Balkin told the court Russi had moved to Lara in 2016 and struggled to find work.

Mr Balkin said Russi would not be reappearing before the court.

“She now knows, everyone now knows, of this scourge in the community,” Mr Balkin said, noting you could barely turn on the news without seeing the “latest outrage”.

Magistrate Franz Holzer released Russi on a 12-month adjourned undertaking, without conviction.

Originally published as Aurora Russi, 70, pleads guilty following Lara tobacconist raid