Posted on: 18 July 2025
Heart of the South West Trading Standards Service continues to work closely with the police to stamp out the sale of illegal tobacco and vapes – and this week five more shops were closed down.
Four of the shops are in Torbay and one is in Devon, and it follows the closure of two shops in Exmouth last month.
The shops were closed down for three months each following a joint operation by Devon & Cornwall Police and Heart of the South West Trading Standards.
Plymouth Magistrates Court granted the closure orders at a hearing on Thursday 17 July, following an application by Devon & Cornwall Police.
The three-month closure orders can be extended if necessary.
All the shops had previously been warned about what they were selling – and continued to trade illegally regardless.
Police and Trading Standards Officers jointly served the closure notices after previous inspections had revealed stashes of illegal products.
The hidden items were found with the help of specialist detection dogs.
Alex Fry, Operations Manager for Heart of the South West Trading Standards Service, said: “We will support businesses that play by the rules, but we have had issues with all five businesses with respect to illegal tobacco products and now they are unable to trade for three months.
“Three of the businesses, Karinas, Palace and Paignton Express, specifically built places to conceal the products. However, our use of detection dogs ensured that these products didn’t stay hidden for long.
“This is a great example of how we have worked with our partners in Devon & Cornwall Police to act on intelligence and target unscrupulous sellers.”
Torquay Inspector Rob Harvey said: “Police will continue to work with colleagues at Trading Standards to take action and reassure the public that information reported to us will be acted upon.
“This is a significant step to get four commercial premises closed on the same day by the court and sends a strong message to businesses that we will not tolerate illegal sales which could harm the public’s health. We want to safeguard local communities and respond to concerns. We have found that this type of illegal activity can also harm trade for legitimate local businesses and is often linked to offences of modern-day slavery and exploitation.”