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Record breaking illegal cigarette haul in Banbury
04/01/2022
Seizure came seven weeks after previous record haul at another property in town
Over 650,000 illegal cigarettes have been seized from a Banbury property. The haul by Trading Standards officers from Oxfordshire County Council smashes the previous record for the largest confiscation. That was set just weeks earlier, also from a house in Banbury.
A joint operation with Thames Valley Police on November 29 saw a residential property raided, resulting in the seizure of 680,380 smuggled and some suspected counterfeit cigarettes. Their illegal market value is estimated at between £150,000 and £200,000. Also seized were two mobile phones and a CCTV recorder, all of which will be forensically examined.
A 37-year-old man was interviewed under caution at Banbury Police Station and, with the investigation ongoing, further suspects are expected to be interviewed.
The illicit cigarettes are now being stored at a secure undisclosed location.
Just over 7 weeks earlier, on October 8, Trading Standards officers seized 44,440 cigarettes and 24,500 grams of hand-rolling tobacco from another Banbury property, setting a new record at the time.
Councillor Neil Fawcett, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety, said: “Criminals dealing in illegal tobacco provide a cheap source of supply that can easily end up in the hands of young people whose developing lungs are particularly sensitive to the harm tobacco causes. It also encourages adults to carry on smoking, when giving up would dramatically improve their health and wealth.”
The sting took place under Operation CeCe, a national trading standards initiative in partnership with HRMC, which is playing a significant role in disrupting the illicit trade and helping to take illegal tobacco products off the streets.
Jody Kerman, Oxfordshire County Council’s Head of Trading Standards, said: “This is a quite remarkable seizure and one of the biggest ever achieved by trading standards anywhere in the UK. It’s staggering that such a huge quantity of illegal cigarettes was being stored within an otherwise normal residential property in our community. There is no such thing as a safe cigarette, but it is particularly concerning that suspected counterfeit products have been detected, both in terms of public health and fire safety.”
Trading Standards say that information from residents is vital in helping to stamp out the supply of illegal tobacco. Reports can be made anonymously by calling 0300 999 6 999 or by visiting stop-illegal-tobacco.co.uk.
Published: by Banbury FM Newsteam