Sangit Paan House shopkeeper, Jaydeep Thakker, 44, jailed for six months and fined £2,000 for selling illegal tobacco products.
The man is 44 years old and lives in Harrow. A court fined him £2,000, and he also received a six-month prison sentence. This was for selling illegal products at his Sangit Paan House shop.
In 2022, he was fined £1,650 in court. He admitted buying cheap cigarettes from students who came from India. Then, he resold the cigarettes for a small profit; some were fake Benson & Hedges cigarettes. His illegal actions started in 2015, and he was fined £1,500 plus costs then.
Officers once found many illegal cigarettes lacking required health warnings. There were Marlboro, Jin Ling, Camel, and Victory brands. They also seized illegal oral tobacco pouches. These pouches had nicotine, and some even used synthetic nicotine; such items are illegal in the UK.
He faced prosecution again in 2016 for again selling illegal cigarettes and tobacco. Trading Standards officers raided his Wembley store. It followed a tip on his last day of suspension.
They found many illegal items he planned to sell and also discovered a new storage unit. He used it to hide even more illegal tobacco products. He bought this new unit recently after he said he’d sell the shop.
The council wants to stop illicit tobacco trading and especially targets illegal cigarettes sales. A council member stated he ignored court sentences. It is important to control tobacco. She is happy these illegal goods are off the street. The authority wants to stop illegal tobacco sales completely.
His business got dissolved in September. It became a limited company four months before. The Paan House was on Wembley High Road.