Suffolk police have arrested more than 160 people they say were involved in an illegal cigarette smuggling scheme.

Police say undercover officers sold what they said were tax-free cigarettes to nearly a dozen people over the course of several months. Those individuals are accused of applying counterfeit tax stamps to the cartons before illegally reselling them. Suffolk District Attorney Tom Spota says the smugglers made in excess of $9 million from the sting operation alone.

Investigators say only a portion of the millions of dollars made by illegal sales was confiscated, and federal authorities are looking into whether any of the money was used to fund terrorist groups overseas.