The following are declared to be contraband and therefore subject to civil and criminal penalties under this chapter:
Cigarettes, tobacco products, or other property made contraband by subdivision 1 may be seized by the commissioner or authorized agents or by any sheriff or other police officer, with or without process, and are subject to forfeiture as provided in subdivision 3.
The person making a sale, after deducting the expense of keeping the property, the fee for seizure, and the costs of the sale, shall pay all liens according to their priority, which are established as being bona fide and as existing without the lienor having any notice or knowledge that the property was being used or was intended to be used for or in connection with the violation. The balance of the proceeds must be paid 75 percent to the Department of Revenue for deposit as a supplement to its operating fund or similar fund for official use, and 25 percent to the county attorney or other prosecuting agency that handled the court proceeding, if there is one, for deposit as a supplement to its operating fund or similar fund for prosecutorial purposes. If there is no prosecuting authority involved in the forfeiture, the 25 percent of the proceeds otherwise designated for the prosecuting authority must be deposited into the general fund.
[Repealed, 1Sp2001 c 5 art 18 s 11]
Minn. Stat. § 297F.21
1997 c 106 art 1 s 21; 2000 c 490 art 10 s 20, 21; 2000 c 496 s 1; 1Sp2001 c 5 art 18 s 6-8; 2008 c 154 art 7 s 3; 2008 c 366 art 14 s 7; 2012 c 283 s 3