Vapes, cigarettes and cars seized in shop raids

Tens of thousands of illegal cigarettes and vapes have been seized in raids on shops in Dorset.

Six shops were searched in Weymouth, Ferndown and Gillingham, with five found to have illicit goods.

Police, HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) and trading standards officers, aided by a sniffer dog, also found shisha tobacco and controlled drugs during the two-day operation.

Three vehicles used to store contraband were seized by HMRC and will be scrapped or auctioned, Dorset Council said.

Officers also searched storage locations and cars linked to the shops.

A total of 17,000 individual cigarettes, 15.75 kg of hand rolling tobacco, 1,300 vapes, shisha tobacco, and 30 tubs of nicotine pouches were seized.

The operation was part of a nationally funded illegal tobacco disruption campaign called Operation CeCe.

Dorset's councillor in charge of community safety and regulatory services, Gill Taylor, said: "The sale of illegal tobacco and vapes not only harms the health of Dorset residents but undermines legitimate businesses.

"These vital multi-agency operations are designed to disrupt and frustrate the supply of illegal products and we will continue working closely with our partners to disrupt these criminal networks."

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