Illegal cigarettes and Labubu dolls seized in police raids on shops in Preston, Leyland and Chorley
The operation, which was supported by HMRC, saw officers visit 30 premises across Lancashire
Police seized illegal cigarettes, tobacco and counterfeit Labubu dolls, fidget toys and phone cases during a raid on shops throughout Lancashire.
As part of Operation Wanderstar, officers issued closure notices to several businesses linked to the sale of illicit cigarettes.
Some of the illegal items were stashed inside hidden compartments and found by tobacco detection dogs, while others came following community intelligence.
Working with colleagues from Lancashire Trading Standards, Immigration Enforcement and HMRC, officers visited 30 premises across three days in Preston, Chorley, South Ribble, Blackburn, Pendle, Blackpool, Morecambe, Lytham and Thornton-Cleveleys.
At Eastern European Concenience Store in Friargate, Preston, 49 illegal packets of cigarettes a d seven pouches of tobacco were seized when the shop owner tried to throw it over a rear wall onto wasteland behind the premises.
Five hundred packets of illegal cigarettes and tobacco pouches were found hidden at Big Saver on New Hall Lane, Preston.
At Grab & Go in Hope Terrace, Lostock Hall, 236 illicit packets of cigarettes and 36 pouches of tobacco were confiscated. The haul was located by a Trading Standards dog in a bin area following a tip-off.
At Easy Shop in Chapel Brow, Leyland, about 500 packets of cigarettes and tobacco pouches were sniffed out by a dog after being hidden in the shop.
Cigarettes and tobacco was found hidden behind a cupboard at International in Station Road, Bamber Bridge. The panel was removed by baton and crowbar and the illegal stash was discovered.
Officers found 191 packets of illicit cigarettes and 33 pouches of tobacco hidden in boxes of canned soft drinks at Supercigs in Pall Mall, Chorley. A closure order was served on the shop.
At Sweet & Shop in Market Street, Chorley, hidden illicit tobacco was found by a Trading Standards tobacco dog. A verbal notice of a closure order was also been served.
The team attended eight shops, two barber shops and one takeaway in Blackburn and Pendle.
Items were seized at four shops while two failed test purchases.
A total of 835 packets of illicit cigarettes, 109 packets of hormone replacement therapy, 35 counterfeit phone cases, seven counterfeit Labubu dolls and 20 counterfeit fidget toys were also seized.
A warrant was executed at Marsden Mini Market in Marsden Road, Blackpool, where police seized 80 packets of illicit cigarettes in a bag thrown from a window along with another 350 packets from a vehicle.
At Corner Shop in The Crescent, Lytham, 70 packs of illicit were recovered.
Operation Wanderstar comes under the banner of the National Crime Agency’s Operation Machinize - a national campaign aimed at the disruption of cash being laundered in the UK.
DI Jo Collinson, of the Economuc Crime Unit, said: “Our priority is to tackle businesses that deliberately break the law for financial gain. Their actions not only undermine legitimate businesses but also put customers at risk by selling substandard products as genuine goods.
“Our Economic Crime Unit, working alongside our Neighbourhood Policing Teams, Lancashire Trading Standards, Immigration Enforcement and HMRC, has taken significant action to disrupt this illegal activity across the county.
“This work will continue, and we urge anyone with concerns about suspected illegal activity in their area to report it to police so that appropriate action can be taken.”