A shop owner has been ordered to carry out unpaid work in the community after stocking illegal cigarettes for sale to the public.
Haider Hassan Ali, 39, pleaded guilty to possessing for supply counterfeit and illicit cigarettes and was sentenced at Peterhead Sheriff Court on August 10.
His Fraserburgh shop, Nina’s, in the town’s Broad Street, was inspected in May last year.
Officers moved in after receiving intelligence that the shop, where a warning had previously been issued about the activity, continued to trade in illicit cigarettes.
Trading Standards Officers visited the premises with specially-trained sniffer dog Dixie and found a large quantity of illicit branded cigarettes concealed behind a wooden board in an area under the shop window.
Illicit tobacco and cigarettes is a large scale problem, estimated to cost the UK economy about £3billion a year.
Illicit cigarettes are often made in unsanitary conditions and can contain higher levels of toxic ingredients than genuine branded cigarettes.
Illicit tobacco is known to have contained human excrement, rat droppings, flies and asbestos. Illegal sellers also undermine legitimate local businesses.
Wilma Urquhart, Trading Standards Manager, said: “Smoking is harmful in any case, and counterfeit and illicit cigarettes only increase the risks to smokers.
“This is an alarming example of someone putting profit before the safety of others.
“Illegal tobacco is not a victimless crime and we will investigate fully any instances brought to our attention. We rely on the public to report illegal tobacco available on our streets and help us prevent criminals profiting from the illicit trade.”
Trading Standards want people to report sales of cheap cigarettes from unregistered sellers at markets, in the street, to work colleagues or in the pub.
You can report illegal tobacco or any underage sales in confidence to Trading Standards by calling (01467) 628323 or (01224) 522433.