Another Stockton town centre shop has been closed for selling illicit and counterfeit cigarettes to customers.
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council on Wednesday (26) secured a three-month closure order of the unnamed store, at 80 Dovecot Street, at Teesside Magistrates' Court. Test purchases by the Council's Trading Standards officers earlier this month confirmed illegal cigarettes were being sold from the shop which did not comply with tobacco labelling regulations.
Despite the business operator being warned about criminal activity at the store, further test purchases were made of illicit tobacco, the court was told. On each occasion the shopkeeper retrieved the cigarettes from a rear storage room where they were hidden out of sight.
This action follows on from recent closures of Bulk Sale on Norton Road, as well as the Blue Shop and Zirak Mini Market in the area.
Carolyn Nice, the Council's Director of Adults, Health and Wellbeing, said, "We're sending out a strong message with these closures, if you're selling illegal cigarettes then we will seek to shut you down.
"The investigations into illegal cigarette sales are incredibly complex and our Trading Standards officers continue to work tirelessly and take a zero-tolerance approach. They deserve enormous credit for bringing this action forward so quickly and securing the maximum closure order period of three months.
"Counterfeit cigarettes pose a big risk to communities because it's very difficult to know what is in them and it's incredibly worrying that such cigarettes are being sold to people.
This work was carried out as part of Operation Cece, which is run in partnership with the National Trading Standards and HMRC to help tackle the sales of illicit tobacco.
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 27 million illegal cigarettes, 7,500kg of hand rolling tobacco and almost 175kg of shisha products from sale, the National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC continues to successfully disrupt this illicit trade."
