Over 12,000 illegal vapes and cigarettes seized from three Cambridgeshire shops
5kg of Hand Rolling Tobacco was also seized
Almost 800 illegal vapes have been seized from three shops in Cambridgeshire.
Last Wednesday, September 25th, almost 11,500 illegal cigarettes and 5kg of Hand Rolling Tobacco were also seized from shops in St Neots, Huntingdon and Ramsey.
The seizures were sparked by 'an influx' of intelligence from concerned members of the public.
A multi-agency response including Trading Standards, HMRC, Huntingdon District Council’s Licensing and Housing teams, St Neots Neighbourhood Police Team and Wagtail tobacco dogs were involved in last weeks operation, with several raids having taken place earlier this year.
Raids in Ely, Littleport, March, Chatteris and Ramsey led to the seizure of 5,600 illegal vapes, earlier this year, bringing the total seized this year to 6,400.
Peter Gell, Service Director Regulatory Services said: “These ongoing, targeted enforcement operations send a clear message to the shops that supply these products, and the organised crime gangs behind these crimes, that the sale of illegal vapes won’t be tolerated in Cambridgeshire. We are committed to taking a hard line with anyone we uncover perpetrating these crimes.
“The level of Intelligence we receive from the public and local law-abiding businesses is also indicative of local feeling towards these crimes. They don’t want these crimes being committed in their local communities, and we will continue to tackle it on their behalf.”
Huntingdonshire Neighbourhood Inspector Colin Norden said: “We work to keep our communities safe from harm, and illicit cigarettes, vapes and tobacco pose a serious risk to health as well as fuel funding for other related criminal activity.
“Collaboration with agencies like this is all part of the ongoing work our neighbourhood policing teams do day in, day out, in response to concerns from the local community.
“We ask the public to continue to report any information or concerns to us. The more information we have, the better picture we can build and the more efficient we can be at targeting those causing harm to our communities.”