King Street Vape Shop Was Being Run by Crime Gang

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Trading Standards officers make their biggest ever seizure of cigarettes

Milan Market shop in King Street, Hammersmith

October 14, 2024

A vape shop in Hammersmith has been closed by the council after what it is describing as the biggest ever seizure of illegal cigarettes ever in the borough.

Trading Standards officers removed 60,000 cigarettes and oversized vapes from the former Milan Market at 229 King Street which they believed was being run by a criminal gang.

As well as the cigarettes, packs of hand-rolling tobacco and boxes of fake disposable vapes were confiscated. Large quantities of snacks were also seized when the shop was shut down, and these have been donated to local foodbanks. Officers took the money in the till in case the business owner contacted them to claim it back.

Doug Love, a senior officer with H&F Trading Standards, said that he and a colleague had paid a routine visit to the shop, which had its windows blanked out with bright yellow posters.

They were shocked to discover shelves filled with illegal goods, including 60,000 counterfeit cigarettes and unapproved vapes which were also hidden around the shop. When questioned, a member of staff gave false identity details, and was unable to explain why the items were on sale.

“Investigations found that the retailer was part of a suspected organised crime group,” said Mr Love. “It’s important to show that such businesses are not welcome in our borough.”

Bogus details had been given to the owner of the premises when the vape business leased the shop.

The landlord has now changed the locks and thanked H&F Council for evicting the trader. “I’m very grateful to the council officers who empowered me to reclaim my shop,” he said. “I’d have been unsure what to do without their advice.”

Further checks revealed that the person named on the shop lease is also being investigated by Trading Standards officers in Lancashire.

Bright yellow posters blanking the windows of Milan Market

Cllr Rebecca Harvey, H&F Cabinet Member for Social Inclusion and Community Safety, praised the work of Trading Standards officers for helping keep borough residents safe.

She said, “I was delighted to see Trading Standards act to remove a business that was not only a clear threat to the public’s health but also trading in vast quantities of illegal goods in the high street. This is part of our work to make H&F safer for everyone.”

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