Dora the dog sniffs out secret cigarette stash

A shop has been shut after a sniffer dog detected an illegal cigarette stash hidden in the ceiling.

The 7 Day Stop shop in Sale, Trafford, was closed after Dora the spaniel sniffed out a secret safe above the back room of the shop where counterfeit products were being stowed behind a light fitting.

Staff refused to open the safe, but officers used a crowbar to seize 1,226 cigarettes, five pouches of hand-rolling tobacco and 38 single-use vapes.

The shop, on Washway Road, has been closed down for three months after Manchester Magistrates' Court granted a full closure order on 6 February.

Trafford Council officers also found opened packets of cigarettes under the counter - which can often be linked to the sale of individual illegal cigarettes and underage sales.

When officers revisited a few days later, they found that the damaged compartment where the stash was found was in the process of being rebuilt.

The court heard there had been attempts to change registered company directors immediately after the enforcement action.

The stated new director of the premises was the director of several other premises including one in Hyde, which was closed in November by colleagues in Tameside Council for similar issues.

Following the closure order, no-one will be allowed to enter the premises while the council works with the owner of the building on next steps, the local authority said.

Councillor Rose Thompson said: "This enforcement action shows that we will not hesitate to take steps to protect our communities from people who sell illegal products that can damage health and undermine the livelihoods of reputable traders who follow the rules.

"It sends a strong message that any premises ignoring warnings will face prosecution.

"Trafford operates a zero-tolerance approach to the sale of illicit tobacco and cigarettes, and to the wider criminality that this activity funds."

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