Mystery Facebook page claims to be Nunavut Liquor Commission
RCMP investigating page that offers to sell alcohol to customers in Northern communities
A Facebook page claiming to be the Nunavut and Nunavik Liquor Commission has been showing up in news feeds offering to sell alcohol to communities throughout northern Quebec, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
There are no direct alcohol sales in Nunavut, and many communities in Nunavut and N.W.T. have heavy restrictions on liquor, including complete bans.
Officials with Nunavut's Department of Finance, which is responsible for the Nunavut Liquor Commission, say it has nothing to do with the page.
"Whether it's real or fictitious or not, we're really quite concerned that whoever has posted that Facebook page is seemingly representing themselves as the government of Nunavut, which they definitely are not," said Chris D'Arcy, deputy minister of finance.
D'Arcy said the department doesn't know who is behind the page, or whether the sales advertised are legal. He said the department has been in contact with the Société des alcools du Quebec about whether this is a registered business and whether it's allowed to sell alcoholic beverages. The department has also alerted the RCMP.
"A dry community remains dry no matter what, and if somebody is ordering alcohol from anywhere, it's still against the law," he said.
"If you're in a restricted community, you need the approval of the alcohol education committee for the amounts you want to bring in. Then finally, if importing, there needs to be an import permit.
"I think it's very important that people understand all of that and that they can't just zip onto some kind of funny Facebook page and order it and it's just going to show up."
RCMP investigating
Sgt. Yvonne Niego, spokeswoman for the Nunavut RCMP, said the page is being looked into.
"The public should be aware that this may or may not be a valid website," she said.
The Facebook page touts itself as a "Premium online distributor of Smirnoff Vodka to all cities located in the northern provinces of Quebec, Nunavut and Northwest Territories!"
It says that it will sell a 750 ml bottle of vodka for $59.99 plus shipping and handling, adding "Smirnoff Nunavut will guarantee that an order is sent, but product may not arrive in official packaging."
Photos on the page appear to have been copied from the Smirnoff Ice Malaysia Facebook page.
There is no contact information for the person or people behind the page, but the address listed is a post office box with a postal code for Kuujjuaq, Que.
No one from the page has replied to a message sent by CBC.