More than 1,000 illegal cigarettes and other tobacco products have been removed from sale in Slough thanks to an operation by Slough Trading Standards and Cooper and Yo-Yo the sniffer dogs.
Assisted by Cooper, a red labrador and Yo-Yo, a cocker spaniel from BWY Canine, trading standards officers visited seven shops in Slough last week on the hunt for illegal tobacco.
In total four seizures were made – three from shops and one from the boot of an unlocked and abandoned car – with a street value of more than £10,000.
The operation was part an on-going campaign to eliminate the illegal tobacco trade in Slough.
Illegal tobacco, often sold for less than legal and taxed products, means shopkeepers can undercut the prices of other nearby premises, leading to unfair competition.
And cheaper prices often mean people are less likely to give up smoking as the cost is no longer an incentive to quit.
Councillor Balvinder S Bains, cabinet member for regulation and public protection, said: “Our aim is to rid Slough of people selling and buying illegal tobacco on the cheap.
“It may be residents don’t realise they are buying illegal tobacco, or they don’t care because it is cheap, however the shopkeepers certainly should know it is illegal and that they are breaking the law by selling it, however covertly.
“These retailers are not only cashing in selfishly in a way unfair to other shopkeepers but damaging the local economy in a way potentially dangerous to residents.
“We will not tolerate this in Slough, and we will not hesitate to take action against those we find flouting the law.”
Further action against the premises where illegal tobacco was found is now being considered, including prosecution for the offences.