A retailer from the north-east of England has had his gantry removed by Imperial Tobacco following a conviction for selling counterfeit cigarettes.
Over 10,000 fake cigs were seized in a joint police and HMRC raid on Washington Wine and Convenience in Usworth, Tyne and Wear. Retailer Tajinder Singh’s gantry was stocked with a mixture of both legitimate and counterfeit “plain” packs.
James Hall, Imperial Tobacco UK’s Anti-Illicit Trade Manager, thought the case was “the tip of the iceberg”.
“Recent HMRC statistics estimate the most recent tobacco tax gap to be an all-time high £2.4bn, owing to a rise in the sales of non-duty paid contraband and counterfeit tobacco,” he said.
Imperial, which has recently launched a new app to help combat the illicit trade, had previously raised concerns that the introduction of plain packaging would hinder the fight against illegal tobacco.
“Cases like the above simply reinforce our contention,” said Hall.
If any wholesalers or independent retailers have suspicions around the sale of illegal tobacco in their area, or have seen any plain packs in their locality they believe may be counterfeit, please act by contacting either the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000, or your local Trading Standards or police.
