Barnet Council’s Trading Standards have seized over £3m of hand rolling tobacco in series of raids across the borough.
They targeted five businesses and a self-storage container across Finchley, Colindale, Edgware, West Hendon and Golders Green - in what has been termed Operation CeCe.
They uncovered 3.6 tonnes in tobacco leaf in 180 boxes, weighing 20kg each, which would have made at least 72,000 sellable pouches with a value of £3,121,200.
Officers also seized 4,506 cigarettes worth £65,337, 309 pouches of hand-rolling tobacco worth £13,395.15, 973 vapes worth £9,730 as well as 59.55kg of shisha tobacco worth £2,976.91.
Officers have revealed they found products behind hidden doors, in two vehicles, in a safe, and in a huge self-storage container near one premises.
They were assisted by the Met Police, HMRC and helpful sniffer dogs.
Just five days later, Barnet’s Trading Standards team were back out on the beat, this time targeting an alleged organised crime group through Operation Dinar.
They busted a smoking store in Hendon and a shop linked to it in Tottenham, using information gathered during a previous Operation CeCe that happened back in September. They also targeted the Haringey and Ealing home addresses of two suspects, who were then taken into police custody, during the four simultaneous raids on Tuesday this week.
At these addresses the team seized 1,621 cigarettes worth £23,504.50, 2,435 vapes worth £24,350, 59 pouches of hand-rolling tobacco worth £2,557.65, 1kg of shisha worth £49.99 and over £4k in cash.
Cllr Barry Rawlings, leader of Barnet Council and cabinet member for strategic partnerships, economy and effective council, said: “Our Trading Standards Officers covertly inspect businesses on a regular basis to ensure they’re trading fairly and within the law.
“Businesses should not be profiteering on the black market by selling products that will cause them harm.”
“We take the health and wellbeing of our residents extremely seriously, and businesses should not be profiteering on the black market by selling products that will cause them harm.”
Trading Standards and the police will be considering a full range of enforcement actions against the individuals and businesses it seized the products from.
To avoid prosecution or closure orders, businesses are advised to only buy from legitimate sources and keep a secure printed invoice or receipt for all purchases, the force added.
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