Islington Council and police force have prosecuted a local trader after he was found to be in possession of counterfeit tobacco, which he was planning to sell.
He was charged following an investigation carried out by the police and the council’s Trading Standards team.
Albert Sheddon of Ilford in Essex was fined £120 and ordered to pay legal costs of £840, after pleading guilty to the charge at Highbury Magistrates’ Court.
The court made an order allowing the Trading Standards team to destroy the seized goods.
Police initially spotted Sheddon acting suspiciously on the corner of Whitecross Street and Roscoe Street in east London. A total of 2,400 foreign-labelled or counterfeit cigarettes were seized – along with 43 pouches of rolling tobacco.
After sentencing, Islington Council’s Executive Member for finance, performance, and community safety, Councillor Andy Hull, said:
“This prosecution sends a clear signal that the council will not tolerate traders who sell illegal and harmful products, which undercut our local businesses.
“Most traders operate well within the law, but we will take action against those who don’t.”
According to HMRC, the estimated loss to the taxpayer from the illegal tobacco market was £2.1bn for the year 2013-2014.
HMRC says that there are also costs to the health service and loss of profit to UK corporations and legitimate tobacco sellers.
Cheap tobacco can also encourage people to start smoking and make it more difficult for them to quit.
Duncan Lewis Criminal Lawyers
Duncan Lewis criminal lawyers can advise at any stage of a public protection offence, including charges involving selling counterfeit goods, selling illicit alcohol or tobacco products, weights and measures issues, mislabelling offences, food hygiene breaches, selling restricted items to minors and breaches of health and safety regulations.
There are Duncan Lewis offices across England and Wales and in most major cities – and Duncan Lewis can advise on police raids and premises inspections by Trading Standards or local authority fraud teams.
For expert legal advice on public protection offences, call Duncan Lewis criminal lawyers on 0333 772 0409.
For 24/7 help at a police station, call the Duncan Lewis Solicitors’ 24-Hour Emergency Helpline on 0333 772 0607.