Raids on shops selling illegal tobacco in Maidstone, Sittingbourne and Dover

The trade in illicit tobacco products across Kent has been disrupted by joint raids using sniffer dogs.

Five stores in three towns – Maidstone, Sittingbourne and Dover – were visited by Kent Trading Standards in collaboration with Kent Police and HMRC.

They were accompanied by specially trained tobacco and cash detection dogs named Griff, Bran and Maggie.

The teams seized 163 e-cigarettes, 153,200 cigarettes, 75.5 kg of hand-rolled tobacco and 160 packets of shisha, all of which were illegal.

Additionally, £10,000 cash was seized from a shop in Maidstone.

The illegal stock had been hidden in elaborate hiding places, including a tunnel through which officers had to crawl to find a stash of illegal tobacco products.

During the operation, additional intelligence led the team to another location where an additional 60,000 cigarettes and some rolling tobacco were seized.

James Whiddett, Kent Trading Standards operations manager, said: “This has been a hugely successful operation.

“Our staff, working with partner agencies, maximized the day’s effectiveness by targeting illicit tobacco and e-cigarettes.

“The team’s efforts were supported by specialist search dogs capable of detecting hidden stocks of illegal tobacco products in shops.

“By working together, we are making our communities safer by removing these dangerous and illegal products from our high streets.”

Mr Whiddett said illegal tobacco shops were a nationwide problem. He said: “Such stores all follow the same model: they pretend to be a small food retailer filled with large quantities of bulky, cheap items.”

Illegal tobacco products are often linked to organized criminal groups

“The items are rarely purchased by customers, but are only used as an excuse to sell large quantities of tobacco or e-cigarettes. In most of these stores there is no attempt to hide the illegal tobacco, but rather to leave most of it on display or under the counter.

“It is believed that these shops are making thousands of pounds a week from selling this illegal tobacco. The transactions are typically cash transactions which are then used to finance other crime and deprive the local economy of legitimate revenue.”

Businesses selling illegal tobacco can be reported anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via the Stop Illegal Tobacco hotline or telephone 0300 999 6 999.

Kent Police Commissioner Pete Steenhuis said: “The findings and the discovery of illegal goods in a hidden room just shows how far the perpetrators will go.”

“The sale of illegal tobacco and e-cigarettes is often linked to the running and financing of organized criminal groups, so it is important to disrupt this illegal trade.” If it continues to thrive, it could lead to increased criminal activity and associated problems for leading the broader community.”

“If people have concerns or information about something similar happening in their neighborhood, I encourage them to report it and help stop the criminals.”