Counterfeit cigarettes, vapes and Viagra were found after several raids at an off licence.

The shop on Tottington Road in Elton, which has been known as Tottington Off Licence and Convenience, Best One and Sid’s, has had its licence revoked after the discovery of hundreds of illegal items.

The council’s licensing hearing sub-committee heard the shop had been the subject of three visits by Trading Standards between 2019 and 2023, during which a number of illicit products were confiscated, including 460 cigarettes that did not comply with legislation.

In December 2021, officers also discovered illicit cigarettes hidden in a printer, as well as counterfeit Viagra hidden among packets of crisps.

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Following a further complaint in August 2022, the shop was visited by officers from Trading Standards officers and Greater Manchester Police, who found more than 250 counterfeit vapes.

Later than year, a further complaint about illegal vapes was received from someone who alleged they were hospitalised after purchasing one from the shop.

Council licensing officer, Laura Jones, said the designated premises supervisor (DPS), who has responsibility for the day-to-day running of the shop, had “ignored previous warnings” and had shown “disregard” for licensing objectives, which include keeping the public safe from harm.

A representative for the licence holder, Surendra Panchal, said his client, Guljeet Kaur, planned to sell the business and find a new licence holder in light of the complaints received and a potential buyer had been identified.

He said: “We understand the problem, we are quite worried about what has happened.

“We would like to remove the DPS from the premises, it is the DPS who has caused all these problems, we are asking the DPS to totally leave the premises. We are appointing a new DPS.”

The committee expressed concern that the shop’s licence holder, who lives in Newport, Wales, “had nothing to do” with the business, leaving to the daily running of the premises to Surbir Singh Bhatia, who lives in Bolton.

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Following the hearing, which took place on Thursday, April 11, the committee decided unanimously to revoke the premises licence and remove the DPS.

Committee chair Cllr Gavin McGill said: “The committee’s decision is to revoke the license and remove the DPS.

"We listened to all the information provided and we were satisfied that under the prevention of crime and disorder.

“The best decision to protect the public from harm was to revoke the licence and remove the DPS, that was the unanimous decision of the committee.”