Shop fined £16k over illicit tobacco haul

A shop has been fined £16,000 after a haul of illegal tobacco products was seized for a second time.

During a raid at Easy Mini Market Ltd, on Wednesfield Road in Heath Town, Wolverhampton, trading standards officers found 7,910 single cigarettes, 79 pouches of hand‑rolling tobacco and 206 single‑use e‑cigarettes hidden in the store.

Sharifullah Azimi, the owner, pleaded guilty to 17 charges on behalf of himself and the company, which trades as Easy Shop.

At Dudley Magistrates' Court on 28 January, the business and Azimi were ordered to pay a total of £16,393.66.

In July 2019, trading standards officers carried out a test operation which saw a packet of counterfeit cigarettes being sold to a 15‑year‑old volunteer.

At the time, 4,900 illicit cigarettes and 750g (1.7lbs) of illicit hand‑rolling tobacco were found and the owner was issued with a written warning.

Five years later, a second underage sale was attempted and refused, but a pack of illicit cigarettes was sold to a covert council officer, City of Wolverhampton Council has said.

A haul of illegal products was discovered hidden under the counter and in the storeroom, and illicit e‑cigarettes were found concealed in the cigarette gantry.

Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal said: "Illicit vapes and tobacco present significant health risks. As unregulated products, they can contain dangerously high levels of harmful chemicals and contribute to underage use, increasing the risk of addiction.

"These unlawful sales also undermine honest local businesses, creating unfair competition for traders who operate responsibly. "

Following the latest seizures, Azimi pleaded guilty to four Tobacco and Related Products Regulations offences, one Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations offence and one Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 offence.

The company admitted 11 charges: four under the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, three under the Trademarks Act and one each under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015, the Companies Act 2006 and the Proceeds of Crime Act.

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