A TOTAL of £37,334 in cash, illegal tobacco and vapes has been seized in a crackdown at shops across the South West - including in Wellington.

Over a five-week intelligence-led operation, Heart of the South West Trading Standards visited 14 shops in towns and cities including Wellington, Taunton, and Plymouth.

Only one of the vendors checked were confirmed to possess no illegal products.

Supported by the police services, trading standards seized a total of £37,334 of illegal tobacco, vapes and cash over the course of the operation.

Alex Fry, operations manager for Heart of the South West Trading Standards, said: “The removal of illegal tobacco and vapes from entering the marketplace is a high priority for us and we have conducted a number of intelligence-led operations.

“The service uses detection dogs so regardless of where it is hidden, in a storage container or retail premises, the dogs have the ability to sniff out even small quantities of tobacco and vapes that are hidden from view.

“The sale of counterfeit and illicit tobacco and illegal vapes is big business and those shops involved can undercut other local general stores who are trying to operate legally during difficult economic conditions.”

According to the GOV.UK website, HMRC estimates that the illicit market in tobacco duty and related VAT was £2.8 billion in 2021 and 2022.

The government believes that “the proceeds of this crime fund the smuggling of weapons, drugs, and even human beings across the globe.”

In an effort to deter people from smoking, the government has relied on high duty rates and have made tobacco less affordable, helping to reduce smoking in the UK from 26 per cent to 12.9 per cent in 2022.

The continued sale of illicit products led to the launch of HMRC’s first strategy to tackle illicit tobacco in 2000.