Four arrests made over illicit tobacco found in Boston
More than 130,000 illegal cigarettes and other products were seized
Four people have been arrested over counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco in Lincolnshire.
Discoveries of more than 130,000 illegal smoking products were made during a co-ordinated operation to crack down on money laundering in the county.
Op Machinize was led by the National Crime Agency, with support from Trading Standards and a specialist search dog supplied by Wagtail UK.
In separate incidents, two 24-year-old men were detained in Boston on 2 October - the first after a search of two vehicles believed to be connected with a store on Horncastle Road, in which 9,800 illicit cigarettes and 1kg of hand-rolling tobacco was found.
Another man was arrested after officers discovered products hidden in the ceiling and under the counter of a store on Church Lane.
Two more men were arrested on 23 October, at a store on the Market Place in Boston, also on suspicion of possession of counterfeit cigarettes.
Inspector Paul Sands, who co-ordinated these enforcements, said: “Criminals go to extraordinary lengths to conceal illicit tobacco because it is a cornerstone of their wider operations.
"Profits from these products often fund highly organised crime, including human trafficking, drug supply, and money laundering - activities that affect communities everywhere."
"Lincolnshire will not tolerate organised crime, and we will use every legal tool to dismantle it.”