Illegal vapes seized in series of shop raids

Thousands of illegal vapes and cigarettes have been seized during a series of raids on shops in Cambridgeshire.

Almost 800 vapes, 11,500 cigarettes and 5kg of hand rolling tobacco were confiscated from three shops in St Neots, Huntingdon and Ramsey on 25 September.

The multi-agency operation included trading standards officers and tobacco-sniffing dogs.

The county council said the raids followed "an influx of intelligence from concerned members of the public".

Earlier this year, raids in Ely, Littleport, March, Chatteris and Ramsey led to the seizure of 5,600 illegal vapes, bringing the total seized this year to 6,400.

Issues identified included vapes with tank sizes that are illegal in the UK due to the quantities of liquid they contained, and vapes that wrongly stated they had no nicotine inside.

Peter Gell, from Cambridgeshire County Council, said: "These ongoing, targeted enforcement operations send a clear message to the shops that supply these products, and the organised crime gangs behind these crimes, that the sale of illegal vapes won't be tolerated in Cambridgeshire.

"We are committed to taking a hard line with anyone we uncover perpetrating these crimes."