Man sentenced for illegal tobacco sales
Martin Nistor, aged 35, appeared at Cheltenham Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 12 June for sentencing in a case brought by Gloucestershire County Council’s trading standards service.
Nistor, who had pleaded guilty at a previous hearing, was sentenced to an 18 month community order with the requirement to undertake 225 hours of unpaid work. Magistrates also ordered him to pay a victim surcharge of £114 and costs of £1,250.
Nistor, previously of Vauxhall Road, Gloucester, but now resident in Beeston, Leeds, was the owner of International Mini Market at 155 Barton Street, Gloucester, between August 2021 and March 2023. This shop was a persistent retailer of illegal cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco.
An undercover trading standards officer made a series of purchases of illegal tobacco from the shop in January, February and March 2023. This showed that the shop sold cheap cigarettes at £7.50 per packet. Two men worked in the shop, with one behind the counter taking money from sales and the other handing the cigarettes to the test purchaser. These cigarettes were not labelled in English, did not carry the correct warnings or health information, and were never intended to be sold in the UK.
Trading standards officers believed that illegal tobacco was not being stored inside the shop, to try to prevent it from being found and then directly linked to the shop.
Covert observations made by trading standards officers established that each morning, a shop worker placed large bags into a vehicle in Blenheim Road, opposite the shop. They believed that the bags he placed into the vehicle contained illegal tobacco.
An entry warrant authorising forced entry to the vehicle was executed on 24 March 2023 and the boot was found to contain bags of illegal cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco. In total, there were 307 packets of cigarettes and 47 pouches of hand rolling tobacco. The cigarettes would have sold for around £2,700.
Less than a week later, Gloucestershire Constabulary obtained a closure order against the premises as part of Operation Vanquish on 29 March 2023.
Nistor was never seen working behind the counter of the shop during test purchases with others making the sales.
Cllr Lisa Spivey, leader of Gloucestershire County Council, said: “This successful prosecution by our trading standards team sends a strong and clear message that the sale of illicit tobacco, cigarettes, and vapes will not be tolerated in the county. These products present serious health risks to our communities, undermine legitimate businesses, and are frequently connected to wider criminal activity.
“We would urge anyone who has any information about businesses selling these types of products to report it to Trading Standards on tradingstandards@gloucestershire.gov.uk”