Illegal cigarettes and vapes worth more than £27,000 have been seized during two days of action led by Tower Hamlets Council’s Trading Standards team.
During the operation in December 2023, officers from Tower Hamlets seized more than 35,300 illegal cigarettes and 1,235 vapes during a routine inspection in the Whitechapel and Mile End area of Tower Hamlets.
Trading Standards Officers had the assistance of a tobacco detection dog provided by Wagtail Specialist Search Dogs. The detection dogs can find cash, tobacco and cigarettes even if hidden in the most unlikely of places.
Illicit cigarettes, tobacco and vapes were found in a secret storage room to avoid detection. All products were seized for further examination and an investigation is now pending.
The illegal cigarettes and tobacco products seized included suspected counterfeit and cheap foreign labelled smuggled products that breach Trading Standards legislation and have also not had duty paid on them. These cannot be legally sold in the UK.
The contents of all cigarettes are harmful and contain around 4,000 different chemicals, including known carcinogens. However, as the ingredients of illegal tobacco is unknown it may contain other dangerous ingredients.
A large number of vapes which contained a tank capacity that exceeded the legal limit were also seized. Many of the seized vapes had excess nicotine content and didn’t meet statutory labelling and information requirements.
Councillor Abu Talha Chowdhury, Cabinet Member of Community Safety, said:
“The seizure carried out by our Trading Standards Officers have successfully taken around £27,000 worth of illegal cigarettes and vapes out of circulation as Christmas approaches people will be looking to bag a bargain.
“Those involved in dealing in illegal tobacco may be encouraging people, including young children, to smoke by providing a cheap source. It is important to clamp down on this activity as it also brings crime into our neighbourhoods, which is why our Trading Standards Officers are proactive in disrupting this illicit trade. This also has an impact on legitimate business who are trading legally.
“Traders will need to know that they will face prosecution if they choose to deal in these illegal products.”
Lutfur Rahman, Executive Mayor, said:
“We will continue to work tirelessly to protect the public from being scammed by rogue traders and will not hesitate in prosecuting anyone selling illegal items as part of our commitment to making Tower Hamlets safer.
“Our Trading Standards team is completely focused on disrupting counterfeiting rings that fuel organised crime.”
Posted on Friday 22nd December 2023