Wellingborough shop could lose its licence after illicit tobacco worth more than £50,000 found on the premises
A shop in Wellingborough town centre could face getting its licence revoked after police found illicit tobacco worth more than £50,000 on the premises.
A full hearing will take place next week for Euro Market at 1, Church Street, at which point North Northants Council (NNC) will decide whether to take action against the shop.
Northamptonshire Police reported the premises to the council’s licensing team in September with concerns that ‘serious crime’ that results in ‘substantial financial gain’ was taking place.
A report submitted by the force explained that they originally attended the Euro Market on information received from the Modern Slavery and Exploitation Helpline. They said previous intelligence also linked the shop to the sale and storage of smuggled tobacco.
Reportedly, large quantities of tobacco without the relevant UK tax-paid markings were found in a store room and stashed under the counter near the till.
Police said that 2,519 packs and 624 pouches of illicit tobacco were found, which, if sold at market price, would amount to £56,500 of goods.
An interim suspension of the shop’s licence was agreed by NNC at the end of September.
The report states that the Euro Market shop has remained closed with its shutters down since Northants Police submitted their licensing review application.
Force licensing sergeant Simon Moreton said that the sale of illicit tobacco can be ‘very dangerous for people’s health’ and can also be a sign of ‘more sinister serious and organised crime’.
And added: “I hope this sends a message to other premises thinking of doing something similar. We will catch up with you and we will do everything we can to ensure your privilege of having a licence is removed.”
The Home Office Immigration Enforcement Team has since responded and said they cannot find any record of immigration offences and will not be making any representations on this review.
The licensing review for the shop is set to take place on Tuesday, October 22.
The committee will make a decision on whether to modify the conditions of the shop’s licence, remove the current premises supervisor, suspend the licence for up to three months or revoke the shop’s licence entirely.