Illicit tobacco seized by trading standards officers

Trading Standards officials have uncovered a haul of illicit tobacco and cigarettes during an operation in Grimsby.

Officers from North East Lincolnshire Council, working with specially trained sniffer dogs, found the illicit products as they searched three shops and a flat in Freeman Street and a further flat on the Willows Estate.

Officers found tobacco and cigarettes with a total street value of £8,405 and which would cost £20,172 to buy legitimately. The discovery includes tobacco and cigarettes suspected of being counterfeit, and other non-duty paid products which cannot be legally sold in the UK.

The haul included the discovery of some red packet Jin Ling cigarettes, which are thought to be among the first to have been found in the UK.

Customers who smoke counterfeit cigarettes have been warned they are taking huge health risks, with the UK Border Agency recently intercepting items containing asbestos, mould and even human excrement.