More than 3,000 illegal cigarettes and over 1kg of illegal hand rolling tobacco were seized from a shop in Gateshead.
Gateshead Council Trading Standards and officers from Northumbria Police uncovered the haul of illegal tobacco with the help of a highly trained tobacco sniffer dog, during intelligence-led daytime raids.
The seizure came from Yusuf Mini Market Ltd on Coatsworth Road, in Bensham, where the illegal tobacco was found in a concealed area within the shop.
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The searches took place under Operation CeCe which is a National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC to tackle illegal tobacco.
Investigations into the seizures are continuing and Trading Standards says further action is likely.
Anneliese Hutchinson, Gateshead Council’s service director for Development, Transport and Public Protection, said these latest raids should act as a warning to other retailers engaged in criminal activity.
He said: "Gateshead Council works closely with our colleagues at Northumbria Police to tackle the criminality and anti-social behaviour that these shops inevitably bring to the area.
"These latest raids demonstrate that we will take robust action wherever we identify wrong-doing and criminal behaviour, and these and other shops can expect to continue to be targeted by our officers."
If you'd like to share some information and help keep illegal tobacco out of your community, you can report it on the Illegal Tobacco Hotline: 0300 999 0000. It's quick, easy and completely anonymous.
