A £37,000 swoop in Plymouth uncovered illegal tobacco, vapes, and cash, across numerous shops in Devon and Somerset.
They checked shops across Devon and Somerset. The officers visited fourteen different shops. This happened between January and February. Police helped with this operation.
The police forces were Devon & Cornwall and Avon & Somerset. They visited shops in many towns. These towns included Plymouth and Taunton. Detection dogs helped find hidden items.
Almost every shop sold illegal things. Only one shop followed all the rules. The other thirteen shops broke the law. This is a serious problem.
An officer from Trading Standards spoke about it. Removing illegal tobacco and vapes matters. They have done many operations recently. Dogs help them find hidden items.
The dogs can sniff out hidden tobacco and find vapes too, even in small amounts. These items might be hidden well, but the dogs still find them inside.
Selling fake tobacco makes big money, hurting stores that follow the law. These honest stores struggle in tough times, and illegal sales make it harder.
A council member spoke about health, wanting Plymouth to be a healthy city. Removing illegal vapes helps a lot because this crime is not harmless at all.
Cheap products entice kids to start smoking and vaping because of low prices. Criminals use the money for other things and hide tobacco in tricky ways.
Investigations are now underway at those stores. You can report illegal products to Trading Standards if you see something, using email or calling by phone.
Report concerns to tradingstandards@devon.gov.uk, or call 01392 383000. They want to know about counterfeit or illegal goods and will investigate properly.