Almost £100,000 worth of illegal vapes and cigarettes have been seized
following the latest joint operation by trading standards and police.
Darlington Borough Council’s trading standards team, joined forces
with police officers from Durham Constabulary, to ramp up its
enforcement action in response to multiple complaints about the sales of
vapes to children as young as 12 and the supply of over-strength vapes.
Several days of action have resulted in seizures of illegal
over-strength vapes and/or illegal cigarettes.
The joint operation aims to tackle the roots of the problem as well as
removing illegal goods from sale and the total value of seized goods so
far is almost £100k, which will have a huge impact on those traders who
deliberately flout the law.
Following our previous day of action, seizures of illegal vapes have
been made in Darlington from Neasham Road Mini Market; Magic Vape on
Tubwell Row; Cloud Collaborative on King Street; Darlo Phone Repair on
Skinnergate and Dima Mini Market on North Road.
Suspected counterfeit or illicit cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco
have also been seized from Neasham Road Mini Market and associated
addresses; Dima Mini Market on North Road; Easy Shop on Victoria Road
and S V Mini Market on Gladstone Street.
This operation has so far removed 4,802 illegal vapes from sale,
ranging from 2,500 puffs to 10,000. A 3500 puff vape is approximately
equivalent to smoking 280 cigarettes. In addition, 112,540 illegal
cigarettes and 36.75kg of hand-rolling tobacco were also seized.
The premises were all visited following complaints from members of the
public. All traders were given advice on the law, particularly in
relation to underage sales, and reminded of their obligations.
Shaun Trevor, who led the operation on behalf of trading standards,
said: “If you sell illegal vapes or cigarettes, especially to
children, then expect a visit from us.
“We would encourage residents to report any concerns about any
suspected illegal products. We take complaints seriously and will
investigate them all and take action where appropriate. We have further
action planned in order to stem the flow of these illegal products in
Darlington.”
Councillor Mike Renton, Darlington Borough Council’s cabinet member
for stronger communities, added: “This trade in illegal goods not only
harms our communities but also businesses who are complying with the law
and finding that they can’t compete with nearby stores selling illegal
goods at pocket money prices.
“We will continue our efforts to monitor and visit stores which sell
illegal products and don’t comply with age restrictions, and will use
all available measures including prosecuting those responsible to put a
stop to this trade.”
Inspector Peter Newman, from Durham Constabulary, said: “Illicit and
dangerous tobacco can not only cause serious harm to people’s health,
but the proceeds are often invested into organised crime and can help
fund more serious offences.
“If you have information regarding potential criminality in your
community, please report it to us.”
Anyone with any information that can assist trading standards can email
tradingstandards@darlington.gov.uk or report it using the online form
(this can be done anonymously) at www.darlington.gov.uk/ts-report-it
