THOUSANDS of pounds worth of illegal cigarettes and vapes were seized from stores in Ellesmere Port as part of a recent police operation.

Officers from the Western Exploitation team joined Trading Standards on Wednesday, October 23, as part of Operation Accommodate targeting stores linked to immigration crime and seizing over £50,000 worth of illegal tobacco and cigarettes.

Teams visited five commercial properties across the town, with search dogs finding four sophisticated concealments, controlled by high-powered electromagnets, hiding the illegal tobacco, cigarettes and vapes.

The products that were found during the operation were being sold to the stores in large quantities and were, in turn, being sold on at half the price of genuine tobacco-products.

In total, officers found:

  • 77,140 fake/illegal cigarettes
  • 6.15kg of illegal hand-rolling tobacco
  • 1963 Illegal Vapes

(Image: Cheshire Police)

Operation Accommodate was part of the larger Operation Guardians, which is a recurring borough-wide operation by Cheshire Constabulary that combines the efforts of several policing units, including neighbourhood policing, the Serious Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), the Online Child Abuse Images Team (OCAIT), and the Sex Offender Management Unit (SOMU), among others.

Together, more than 200 officers and staff worked to target and deter predators, conduct checks on known offenders and suspects, and build bridges with vulnerable young people to prevent them from coming to harm.

In total, the week-long operation saw:

  • Over 70 hi-visibility and plain clothes operations undertaken
  • Over 10 arrests were made for Indecent images of children, drug supply, possession of offensive weapons, immigration offences and possession of counterfeit goods
  • The Integrated Offender Management team visited 39 priority offenders identified as being high-risk
  • Over 20 visits undertaken by PVP Exploitation teams to high-risk children
  • 6 OCAIT warrants executed
  • 8 warrants were executed

Detective Chief Inspector Chris Williams, who was responsible for coordinating the operation, said: “Operation Guardians is an opportunity to highlight to the public the great work our officers do every to protect and safeguard children in Cheshire.

“The protection of children is a priority to all of our Cheshire Police officers and staff – that’s why a big focus of this particular version of Operation Guardians was to ensure that known offenders and suspects that are on bail are not doing anything that will cause further harm.

“It’s vital that those who would harm children in Cheshire know that we won’t let it go unchecked and unchallenged – this operation may have shone a light on this activity, but it’s very much our business as usual the whole year round.

“This year's operation also coincided with the launch of the 'When You are Ready' campaign, a national initiative which is designed to encourage further victims and survivors to reach out for support if that’s the right thing to do for them - we want victims to know that we will always be here to support and listen to your concerns.”

Anyone who has information relating to child abuse and exploitation or has concerns can call Cheshire Constabulary on 101 or report online via the Cheshire Constabulary website.

Information can also be provided anonymously by contacting Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.