An illegal alcohol factory in Staffordshire, capable of producing 150 bottles of fake vodka every hour, has been shut down as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) cracks down on “extremely harmful” criminal trade.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) searched a commercial premises near Lichfield on Feb 1 and discovered the property was filled with counterfeit vodka and production machinery, stated recent reports. It is estimated the factory was capable of evading £2.5 million of excise duty every year.
Officers recovered hundreds of bottles of suspected counterfeit Krackoff vodka along with tanks that could hold 7,000 litres of liquid.
Judith Rockett, assistant director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said:
“The sale of illegal alcohol will not be tolerated by us or our partner agencies. Disrupting criminal trade is at the heart of our strategy to clamp down on the illicit alcohol market which costs the UK around £1 billion per year.
“This is theft from the taxpayer. This crime hurts legitimate businesses and the people that buy the often-dangerous products. Anyone with information about any type of tax fraud can contact HMRC online.”
HMRC dismantled and removed the equipment and also seized 241 full five litre containers of ethanol; 423 full 70cl bottles of Krackoff Triple Distilled Vodka; 9,030 empty 70cl bottles; 112 boxes of bottle tops; nine Intermediate 1,000 litre Bulk Container’s (IBCs) – three of which contained ethanol – and 1,284 empty five litre containers of ethanol.
Investigations are continuing and no arrests have been made at this stage.
Victoria Wilson, cabinet member with responsibility for Trading Standards at Staffordshire County Council said:
“Fake and illegal alcohol can be extremely harmful to people’s health and can cause lifelong disabilities. It’s something that our Trading Standards service take very seriously and work hard with partner agencies to tackle.
