Trading Standards officers at Staffordshire County Council have seized illegal vapes, illicit cigarettes, and illegal food items, with an estimated retail value of over £65,000.
Officers supported by Staffordshire Police, Home Office Immigration and Lichfield District Council’s Environmental Health team made the discovery during raids at four premises, two in Lichfield and two in Burntwood on Monday 7 October.
More than 2,850 illegal or oversized vapes, 42,600 cigarettes, 17 kg of hand rolling tobacco and 463 illegal food items including American candy and drinks were seized.
Officers were also supported by specially trained search dogs who discovered the tobacco in hidden compartments including inside the stairs in one of the shops.
The action was part of Operation CeCe and Operation Joseph, both national initiatives to tackle the sale of illicit tobacco and illegal vapes respectively.
Victoria Wilson, Cabinet Member responsible for Trading Standards at Staffordshire County Council, said, “Our officers continue to tackle the sale of illicit and illegal products and this was a significant seizure.
“The supply of illegal goods is closely linked to organised crime and helps fund their operations. The items can also be dangerous to people’s health and affect legitimate traders, so taking them off the market is a real result.”
Lichfield District Council Cabinet member Councillor Alex Farrell said, "Our officers have participated in executing a series of successful raids across the Lichfield District seizing illegal products which would have been sold for thousands of pounds.
“The protection of the district’s residents is our priority and this operation is a stark warning to perpetrators that this criminality will not be tolerated.
Lord Michael Bichard, Chair, National Trading Standards, said, "The trade in illegal tobacco harms local communities and affects honest businesses operating within the law. Having removed 46 million illegal cigarettes, 12,600kg of hand rolling tobacco and almost 175kg of shisha products from sale, Operation CeCe, the National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC continues to successfully disrupt this illicit trade.”
Since the start of Operation CeCe and Joseph, Trading Standards officers in Staffordshire have seized almost 610,000 cigarettes, over 25,000 vapes and 301 kg of hand rolling tobacco. The seizures have a total retail value of around £740,000.
