Illegal vapes worth thousands to be destroyed after Ipswich shop targeted by Trading Standards

Illegal vapes worth thousands of pounds seized from an Ipswich shop have been forfeited at court and the owner fined following a prosecution by Suffolk Trading Standards.

Cardinal Convenience Store in Franciscan Way, Ipswich, was raided by Trading Standards after selling an illegal device to an undercover inspector in a test purchase in January this year.

The vape had 6.40ml of fluid within it, more than three times the 2ml legal capacity limit for a disposable vape.

Trading Standards officers then searched the shop where 867 illegal vapes worth more than £8,000 were found.

The shop is owned by Kaka Baran Ltd. Its sole director is Sabah Mamand, who appeared at Ipswich Magistrates Court on Monday November 18.

Mamand, of Hogarth Road, Ipswich, pleaded guilty both as director and as a representative of the company, to selling an illegal e-cigarette and possession for supply of 867 illegal e-cigarettes, contrary to the Tobacco and Related Product Regulations 2016.

He was fined £230 and ordered to pay costs of £392. The court also ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the e-cigarettes.

Mamand claimed in interview that the 867 vapes seized in January 2024 were stock that was not found during a previous seizure operation in February 2023, however he could not provide any evidence to back this up.

Graham Crisp, head of Suffolk Trading Standards, said: “This case highlights the need for shop keepers to comply with the rules when stocking and selling vapes.

“Kaka Baran Ltd were found with non-compliant vapes on two occasions before this seizure in January 2024.

“Despite receiving guidance following these seizures, Mr Mamand admitted in interview that he knew these vapes were non-compliant but still decided to sell them.

“He has now lost stock worth thousands of pounds and received a criminal conviction for ignoring those rules.”

Councillor Steve Wiles, Suffolk County Council Cabinet member for Public Protection, said: “I congratulate Trading Standards for their hard work in ensuring these illegal vapes do not end up in our community.

“Vapes serve an important purpose in helping people to quit smoking, however oversized disposable vapes vape are illegal.

“Businesses must ensure that any vapes they sell comply with the rules designed to protect consumers, and this case sends a clear message that they will be brought before the courts if they fail to do so.”