More than £75,000 of illegal tobacco and vapes seized in Wellingborough

A joint operation executed by the Wellingborough Neighbourhood Policing Team, in partnership with Trading Standards, saw more than £75,000 worth of illegal tobacco and vapes seized.

On November 12, this year, police officers and representatives from Trading Standards visited five premises in the town and discovered that four out of five of them were selling illegal products.

In total, 11,480 cigarettes, 2.3kg of tobacco and 998 vaping devices were seized from the four shops with a total value of £77,260.

Further investigations into the stores have now commenced.

Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Nic Nawaz said: “People may see the sale of illicit tobacco as a low-level crime but the truth is, not only can it be very dangerous for people’s health, it can also be a sign of more sinister serious and organised crime.

“As a neighbourhood policing team, our job is to keep our local area safe and so I am pleased with this seizure of illegal goods as it demonstrates that we will not tolerate any kind of criminal activity in our town.

“I would encourage anyone with concerns about where they’re living to contact their local neighbourhood policing team so we can help.”