Illegal tobacco worth £20,000 seized in major Stoke-on-Trent operation
Trading Standards target organised crime on city's high streets
A major Trading Standards operation has resulted in the seizure of over £20,000 worth of illegal tobacco and cigarettes in Stoke-on-Trent.
The city council's Trading Standards team confiscated nearly 1,000 packets of illegal cigarettes and 14kg of hand-rolling tobacco from four city premises, some concealed in hidden storage areas.
The operation, which took place on Saturday 24th October, involved multi-agency cooperation with Staffordshire Police and a tobacco dog handler from Wagtail UK, visiting a total of seven premises across Burslem, Tunstall, Longton, Bucknall, and Bentilee.
Councillor Amjid Wazir, cabinet member for city pride, enforcement and sustainability at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, expressed disappointment that illegal products were found at four businesses but praised the team's success in seizing them before public distribution.
"This operation forms part of our ongoing work to tackle organised crime on our high streets," said Councillor Wazir.
Operation Machinize, coordinated by the National Crime Agency (NCA) to combat money laundering and criminal use of cash-intensive businesses, encompasses this investigation.