Glasgow shopkeeper guilty of selling illegal vaping products

A shopkeeper has become the first person in Scotland guilty of illegally selling vaping products.

Khalid Farjani was snared after a large-scale probe by Trading Standards.

The 40 year-old ran his Vapour Frog and Vape Monkey stores in Glasgow's Trongate, Union Street and Dumbarton Road.

He sold nicotine vapour, e-liquids and cigarettes in the three shops in 2018.

Farjani had earlier ignored letters from Trading Standards about his registration to sell the popular smoking products.

He ended up in the dock at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

Farjani, of the city's Partick, pled guilty to two charges of selling nicotine products while unregistered.

He also admitted selling refill containers exceeding the legal volume for such items.

Sheriff Gerard Bonnar ordered him to carry out 90 hours of unpaid work.

Sources have confirmed this is the first case of its type in this country.

The hearing was told Farjani was not registered to bodies such as the Scottish tobacco register to sell vape products.

Several letters were sent to the shopkeeper by Trading Standards to warn him in 2017.

Officials then turned up at one of his shops when they got no response.

Prosecutor Alistair Knox said: “They arrived in June 2018 and discovered the store selling electronic liquids and cigarettes.

“The items were seized from the premises and examined.

“Some of the liquids were found to be above the admitted level.

“Farjani wasn’t on the Scottish tobacco register to sell tobacco products.”

Bob McCormack, defending, told the court Farjani has since closed all his shops.

He said: “He operated these stores on the back of a sensation for these products.

“He was opened for nine months before being visited by Trading Standards.

“He was making a loss due to multinational companies taking business and is now claiming benefits.

"There is no case law with these matters as this is a test case."

Sheriff Bonnar reduced Farjani’s punishment from 100 hours due to his guilty plea.