Nearly £100,000 worth of illicit cigarettes seized in police raid

Police have seized nearly £100,000 worth of illegal cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco during a raid in Glasgow.

More than 211,000 cigarettes and 4.6kg of hand rolling tobacco were found in a property in the Govanhill area of the city on Tuesday during a joint raid from police and officers from Glasgow City Council Trading Standards.

The estimated cost of the cigarettes is £90,000.

Officers have urged anyone with any information regarding the sale of illegal cigarettes to contact them as enquiries continue.

Police sergeant Lynn Donnelly of Gorbals Police Office said: “We work closely with our partners to deter such criminality.

“I would encourage anyone with information about illegal cigarettes or tobacco within the local community to contact Glasgow City Council Trading Standards, Police Scotland on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously online or by calling 0800 555 111.”

Gary Walker, Glasgow city council’s head of community safety and regulatory services, said: “The trade in illicit cigarettes and tobacco is concerning because it harms legitimate businesses which serve our communities and reduces the amount of tax coming in to fund vital public services.

“There is also an additional health risk to smokers as there are no guarantees about what the products contain.”