Huge vapes haul seized in North Tyneside, Gloucester

Illegal vapes worth more than £60,000 have been seized in separate raids in North Tyneside and Gloucester.

Officers from Northumbria Police and North Tyneside Council’s Trading Standards Team have seized more than £50,000 worth of illegal vapes from two addresses on Burdon Street, Percy Main on 3 August.

Together, they recovered more than 3,000 suspected illegal vapes worth tens of thousands of pounds.

Searches of the addresses also recovered almost £32,000 in cash which was seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

Investigations remain ongoing at this time, Northumbria Police said.

Trading standards officers from Gloucestershire County Council have seized 1,800 illegal vapes from a shop in Gloucester.

Officers carried out the seizure, worth an estimated £9,000 to the shop owner, at premises in Southgate Street on 8 August following a complaint by a member of the public.

As it was the first time a seizure had been made from this shop, the owner received a warning and advice on how to avoid buying illegal vapes again.

All the seized items held considerably more than the 2ml of vape liquid permitted and some also had incorrect labelling, meaning they had not passed the correct approval process.

A second seizure of 160 vapes, worth around £1,200, was carried out at a Cheltenham shop on 9 August after trading standards officers were called out to a discovery made by Gloucestershire Constabulary who were on the premises for unrelated reasons.

It brings the total number of illegal vapes seized already this year by Gloucestershire trading standards to 3,700 – worth an estimated £19,500.

Following the seizures, Northumbria Police has warned about of the dangers of buying counterfeit goods.

“Counterfeit vapes pose a real danger to people as they are not produced by licensed companies and contain unknown quantities of chemicals, making them even more harmful than those which are regulated,” Sergeant James Younas, of Northumbria Police, said.

“People might think, just because they may be cheaper, that it’s alright to buy them and take that risk. But what they don’t see is that the money used from the sale of these items may be used to fund organised crime and further illicit activity.”

Councillor Karen Clark, cabinet member for public health and wellbeing at North Tyneside Council, added: “This collective effort underscores our dedication to ensuring public safety and reducing the risks posed by the sale of counterfeit goods. It’s another example of the council and Police working in harmony to address these issues, and we will continue to work together to keep our communities safe and free from harmful products.”

Gloucestershire County Council advised shop owners to protect themselves by buying their vapes from reputable wholesalers, to ensure they are likely to be buying legal vapes and also have a route to complain if they are supplied with illegal ones.

“These seizures cause considerable disruption to shop owners with the loss of thousands of pounds of stock which could easily be avoided if they used reputable suppliers and wholesalers,” Cllr Dave Norman, cabinet member for trading standards at the council, said.

“While vapes may be a useful aid to help smokers quit, they must still comply with the law. This seizure also helps protect law-abiding traders from unfair competition from the sale of illegal products. I would like to thank the member of the public for bringing it to our attention – we will continue to act on information we receive from the public.”