LoginSouth West Shops Shuttered
Shops found selling illegal tobacco and vapes have been hit with closure orders.
Journal of Trading Standards Staff
Posted 22 July 2025 | JoTS Online
Content Tags: Updates|Crime|South West
Five shops have been given three-month closure orders after being found selling illegal tobacco and vapes in a joint operation by Heart of the South West Trading Standards (HotSWTS) and Devon and Cornwall Police.
All of the shops had previously been warned that they were selling illegal goods, but ignored advice from Trading Standards Officers and carried on regardless. At some of the premises stashes of illegal products were found with the help of specially trained detection dogs.
The three-month closure orders, which were granted at a hearing at Plymouth Magistrates Court on 17 July, can be extended if necessary.
These latest closures, which affect four shops in Torbay and one in Devon, follow similar closures of two shops in Exmouth last month.
This is a great example of how we have worked with our partners in Devon & Cornwall Police to act on intelligence and target unscrupulous sellers
Alex Fry, Operations Manager for Heart of the South West Trading Standards Service, commented: “We will support businesses that play by the rules, but we have had issues with all five businesses with respect to illegal tobacco products and now they are unable to trade for three months.
“Three of the businesses, Karinas, Palace and Paignton Express, specifically built places to conceal the products. However, our use of detection dogs ensured that these products didn’t stay hidden for long.
“This is a great example of how we have worked with our partners in Devon & Cornwall Police to act on intelligence and target unscrupulous sellers.”
Torquay Inspector Rob Harvey said: “Police will continue to work with colleagues at Trading Standards to take action and reassure the public that information reported to us will be acted upon.
“This is a significant step to get four commercial premises closed on the same day by the court and sends a strong message to businesses that we will not tolerate illegal sales which could harm the public’s health. We want to safeguard local communities and respond to concerns. We have found that this type of illegal activity can also harm trade for legitimate local businesses and is often linked to offences of modern-day slavery and exploitation.”
PLEASE NOTE: This content originally appeared on our standalone Journal of Trading Standards website (www.journaloftradingstandards.co.uk), which we are gradually migrating over to the Journal's new home on the CTSI website. Please bear with us while we complete this process. This will not affect the production of our Print Edition.
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Content Tags: Updates|Crime|South West
