Court fines shop owner £13,000 for selling illegal cigarettes and e-cigarettes

Oct.09.2023

Bradford man fined £13,000 for selling illegal cigarettes and e-cigarettes, with 898 packs found without safety warnings.

According to a report from the British media outlet Telegraphandargus on October 7th, the Bradford County Court in the UK has conducted a trial against a shop owner selling illegal cigarettes and e-cigarettes. Following charges related to trading standards, the court has ordered the store to pay a fine of £13,000.

The shopkeeper, 42-year-old Nabbaz, has been running a store on Pakistan Road in the city of Kislay. However, the local trade standards authority has received multiple complaints stating that the cigarettes sold in this store are illegal. Upon inspection by the trade standards department, it was found that illegal goods were indeed being sold in the store. As a result, Nabbaz has been sentenced to 200 hours of unpaid community service.

The Trade Standards Bureau has discovered that Nabaz's stores have 898 packages of cigarettes without safety warnings or improperly packaged. Additionally, 1,996 e-cigarettes were found to exceed the permissible limits, with excessively high nicotine concentrations. Current laws stipulate that the "capacity" of e-cigarette liquid should not exceed 2ml, yet some of the liquids examined were found to have a capacity as high as 12ml.

The prosecuting attorney, Mr. Walsh, representing the Trade Standards Bureau, stated that the seized items may be valued between £30,000 to £31,000.

Chowdhury, the defense lawyer representing Nabaz, stated, "Due to struggling business operations, he hoped to increase his income by selling e-cigarettes. However, he found it challenging to distinguish between the legal and illegal varieties.

Mr. Jordy lamented that the substantial seizure of his store's inventory "spelled the demise of (Nabaz's) business," forcing him to sell it. In addition to being ordered to complete 200 hours of community service, Nabaz must also pay a fine of £960 to the Trade Standards Bureau.

References:

[1] Shop owner bought illicit vapes from Manchester warehouse

Also Read:

[1] Widespread Use of E-Cigarettes in British Schools

[2] Derby City Council Shuts Down Illegal E-Cigarette Shops

[3] Manager of Bicester Convenience Store Fined for Selling E-cigarettes to Minors

#Court case #E-cigarette #E-cigarettes and Tobacco #Illegal e-cigarettes #E-cigarette shops

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