Illegal cigarettes and tobacco worth £15k seized

Police have seized more than 11,000 illegal cigarettes and £4,000 in cash across several retail sites during a targeted operation.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said it carried out the visits to several shops on Fleet Road, in Fleet, on Wednesday.

In total, the force said it had seized 11,180 cigarettes, with a street value of about £8,385, alongside 197 packets of hand rolling tobacco worth roughly £6,895.

PC Terry Read, who coordinated the action, said it came after the force had "listened to the community's concerns" regarding illegal trading in the area.

"I'm delighted to say this operation was a huge success, and I hope it demonstrates our continued commitment to protecting our communities from illegal and harmful activity," he added.

Police officers were accompanied on the operation by other agencies, including HMRC, Trading Standards and Immigration Enforcement.

During a visit to one of the store's in question, police said 389 packets of non-duty paid cigarettes were found hidden inside a wooden drawer underneath the till.

These, along with another 170 packets located in the boot of a car linked to the same shop, were found by a sniffer dog specialised in finding tobacco, the force said.

It added that £4,000 in cash, suspected to be linked to criminal activity, was also seized from another store.

As part of the same operation on Thursday, police officers visited a business premises on Crookham Road in the Hampshire town.

The force said this visit saw one man arrested, and later charged, on suspicion of driving whilst disqualified, whilst another man was handed a community resolution after a police officer was assaulted during the visit.