Overview

• Teesside Magistrates' Court granted Stockton Council a three-month closure order for Station Road Convenience Store on Wednesday.
• A police detection dog helped uncover 5,340 illegal cigarettes and forty 50g tobacco packets hidden behind a cut-out section of a brick wall.
• Officers also seized 120 single-use vapes that are prohibited for sale in England under 2024 regulations effective from June 1, 2025.
• Test purchases found cigarettes breaching packaging and trademark rules and being sold for £5, well below typical market prices.
• The enforcement formed part of Operation Cece, with council and police leaders urging continued public reporting of suspected illegal sales.