Shop licence called in for review following search

A city centre shop where police found "illicit" items including Viagra tablets, tobacco and more than £14,000 in cash has been closed down.

International Food Centre, in Lincoln Road, Peterborough, had 683,400 cigarettes, 37.45kg of hand rolling tobacco, and 35 cigars when it was checked by police.

Officers carrying out the warrant in November also found £14,886 in cash, large sums of foreign currency and Viagra tablets.

It has been closed down while Cambridgeshire Police has applied for the review to be considered by Peterborough City Council's licensing sub-committee on 24 January.

The closure order was served on the shop and flat above on 31 December following an application to Huntingdon Magistrates' Court.

A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of tax evasion and money laundering and released on bail until February.

The following week, a man in his 40s was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply sildenafil and has also been released on bail until February.

The shop's licence was transferred to several different holders in recent years.

In April 2022 the premises' licence and designated premises supervisor were transferred to the current licence holder.

PC James Rice, of Cambridgeshire Constabulary, said it applied for the closure order due to "persistent issues in the store around things such as the sale of age restricted products and other illicit items and non-duty paid products".

"Circumstances such as these are often a front for organised criminality and anti-social behaviour, which has detrimental effects in our communities.

"We hope this latest action shows the community that we are committed to tackling organised crime and will continue to police this robustly through regular compliance checks and enforcement of the order."

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