By Emily Caulkett-
A court has ordered a man who recently served a jail sentence for selling illicit cigarettes has been ordered to pay £70,000 by a court.
Judge Andrew Hatton sentenced Riaz to 28 days in prison, adding: “Such offences strike at the very heart of economy at a time when the economy needs to be as strong as it possibly can be.“
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Trading Standards says it hopes the order shows they are “committed to stripping illegal tobacco traders of their ill-gotten gains.”
Mohammed Riaz admitted two counts of possessing goods with a false trademark for sale or hire on June 1, 2021, first when he had 144 packets of 20 cigarettes bearing packaging likely to be mistaken for Richmond, with the view to cause loss to the company and gain to himself.
The further two counts were for producing or supplying a tobacco product in breach of packaging regulations, in the first instance 1,742 products which were not the correct colour, and 538 products which did not carry a combined health warning or one written in English.
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Mohammad Riaz was the owner of Sunrise Supermarket on Westfield Road when it was raided by Trading Standards officers in June 2021.
They found hundreds of packets of illicit tobacco hidden across the store, including in a filing cabinet, in boxes stored on the shelves and from within a loft space in the storeroom.
The products found were 144 20 packs of counterfeit Richmond cigarettes; 116 50g packets of counterfeit Golden Virginia tobacco; 1,742 tobacco products that did not comply with standardised packing rules; and 538 tobacco products without the statutory health warnings.
The contraband was worth tens of thousands of pounds, and was being sold at a much cheaper price than legal tobacco.
Riaz, 68, appeared at Bradford Crown Court last year, charged with possessing goods with a false trade mark for sale, supplying a tobacco product in breach of packaging regulations and supplying a tobacco product which does not carry the combined health warning.
Representatives from Trading Standards told the court that officers had investigated Riaz’s finances in the year since his sentencing, and had determined he had made £70,000 worth of financial gain through illegal activity.
Judge Colin Burn accepted this amount, and agreed that Riaz should have to pay back £70,000 through the proceeds of crime act.
He also imposed a deprivation order meaning Riaz will not be able to get back the items that were seized by Trading Standards – 1,626 packets of counterfeit cigarettes and 116 packs of rolling tobacco.
Trading Standards had asked Judge Burn to award £9,509 costs – which they argued was the cost of investigating and prosecuting the case.
Mr Turner, defending Riaz, said these costs were “not realistic.”
In Riaz’s defence, the court heard that he was deeply ashamed of his actions.
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