Illegal tobacco on Merseyside: Buying cheap cigarettes is not a victimless crime

Tobacco smugglers are putting legitimate shops – and their workers – at risk by encouraging smokers to turn to black market cigarettes sold at a cut rate.

The shop bosses also said their staff play a part in combating underage smoking, arguing street dealers and counterfeiters do not care who they sell to. All of the products were illegal as UK taxes had not been paid on them. At least one of the products is known to have contained counterfeit tobacco.

The scale of the trade was also highlighted – with Liverpool council’s Alcohol and Tobacco Unit seizing 11 kilograms of illegal tobacco and 30,500 dodgy cigarettes in 2015 alone.

 

 

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/illegal-tobacco-merseyside-buying-cheap-10611450