Counterfeit and smuggled tobacco worth £21,000 seized by Tower Hamlets trading standards, police and customs officers

A successful joint operation using tobacco-detection dogs has resulted in large seizures of smuggled and counterfeit products from retailers across Tower Hamlets. The seizures were part of ‘Operation Henry’, a crackdown on the supply of illicit tobacco across nine regions in England by local authorities, funded by the Department of Health. The dogs, which helped make the operation so successful, were provided by Wagtail UK.

The operation began when Tower Hamlets Trading Standards led a team involving Metropolitan police and HM Revenue and Customs officers on visits to seven shops. Over 90,000 cigarettes, 183 packs of rolling tobacco and 3kg of Shisha tobacco were found, with a combined estimated street value of around £21,000, at five of the shops.

Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman, said: “The large amount of tobacco products seized by Operation Henry proves the importance of joint initiatives like this one. We hope the success of this initiative will act as a deterrent to those who feel they can operate above the law.”

None of the tobacco seized during the operation displayed the health warnings required by the Consumer Protection Act 1987 and duty was not paid, contrary to the Customs and Excise Management Act.

Anyone who would like to provide information on sellers of smuggled tobacco are urged to report it, anonymously if they wish, to Trading Standards on 020-7364 5008 or email trading.standards@towerhamlets.gov.uk.