Illegal cigarette trader smoked out in court

Posted 30/01/18

A convenience store on Harrow Road, Wembley and its director have been hit with a hefty fine after being found guilty of possessing and selling cigarettes and other tobacco products without displaying the correct health warnings.

Mr Harpreet Singh and his company, A Plus Superstore Ltd were ordered to pay a total of £3,904 in fines and costs at Willesden Magistrates Court on Tuesday 23 January 2018.
The court heard how 45 year old Harpreet Singh, from Browning Way in Hounslow, had been formally warned by Trading Standards about selling illegal tobacco products in his store after several previous compliance visits by officers.

Mr Singh and his company were each fined £300 per offence, a £30 victim surcharge each and ordered to pay costs of £844, totalling £3904.

Cllr Tom Miller, Cabinet Member responsible for Trading Standards, praised the successful prosecution, commenting:
"This is another great result thanks to our Trading Standards team, who have seized over 24,000 illegal cigarettes in the last 12 months.

"Businesses that sell tobacco products should be more than aware of the legal requirements that have now been in place for some time and should take responsibility to ensure that each item carries the correct health warnings, as required by law, and are displayed in the proper way.

"We want good, honest traders here in Brent and will work with retailers to help them comply but will crack down hard on businesses that ignore our advice and flout the law, as we continue to work towards a safer and healthier borough."

ENDS

Additional information

• Harpreet Singh, director of A Plus Superstore Ltd, pleaded guilty to 10 charges (five on behalf of the company) at Willesden Magistrates Court.
• On 4 July 2017, officers seized a number of tobacco products that did not have the required health warnings on and multiple cigarette packets that were not in the correct standardised packets.
• All offences pertained to failure to comply with the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations Act 2016 and Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015.

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