Trading Standards warns "criminality is relentless" as 13,000 illicit cigarettes seized
Nearly nine kilograms of illegal tobacco, along with 13,000 illicit cigarettes were seized as part of series of raids by Oxfordshire County Council’s Trading Standards team.
Carried out on 29 and 31 March, the team visited seven shops across Cowley and Headington, accompanied by specialist tobacco detection dogs.
Also seized were 123 units of nicotine pouches and 51 single use vapes, with the total street value of the haul was approximately £7,500.
Investigations are ongoing, with premises facing potential criminal prosecution, additional sanctions, including civil financial penalties, and licensing reviews.
Councillor Jenny Hannaby, Oxfordshire County Council's Cabinet Member for Community Safety: “There is no such thing as a safe cigarette, but it is still very concerning that counterfeit versions are so widely available, sold at pocket money prices by criminals who don’t care who they sell to. Thank you again to our brilliant team for their work.
“We know it can be hard to stop smoking, but help is available to anyone living in Oxfordshire. People are three times more likely to successfully stop by using a service like Smokefree Oxfordshire. It’s free to everyone living in the County”.
The raids formed part of Operation CeCe, a national initiative to tackle the sale and supply of illegal tobacco products, funded by HMRC through a partnership with National Trading Standards.
Individuals suspected of having no legal right to work in the UK were also identified and trading standards is liaising with Immigration Enforcement.
Davina Walkin, Oxfordshire County Council's, Trading Standards Operations Manager added: “The public can help us to create a healthier and safer Oxfordshire by being vigilant and reporting any suspicious activity, anonymously if preferred, using our hotline. The illegal tobacco criminality is relentless at the moment - but so are we.”
Anyone with information about the illegal sale of tobacco should contact 0300 999 6 999 or report it anonymously online at www.stop-illegal-tobacco.co.uk.
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