Imperial Tobacco has announced the latest instalment in its Suspect it? Report it! anti-illicit trade campaign.

The new poster shows ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos of a convicted retailer’s retail display unit – the ‘after’ being a bare wall where the unit used to be. The images are taken from the store of Ari Aziz Mohammed (UK Mini Market in Smethwick), who had his unit removed by Imperial Tobacco in April after being convicted in court of selling illegal tobacco products.

Peter Nelson, Imperial Tobacco anti-illicit trade manager, commented: “The minority of retailers who have chosen to participate in this illegal trade must not be allowed to tarnish the good name of their honest, hard-working counterparts.

“Imperial will always work with the independent trade to help the vast majority of honest retailers maximise their profit. Meanwhile, our anti-illicit trade team works closely with Trading Standards and HM Revenue & Customs to weed out those retailers found to be ‘rotten apples’, and ensure customers continue to have faith in their neighbourhood stores.

“Illicit tobacco is an ongoing blight on our local communities. If you’ve any suspicions around its sale where you live, please act by contacting either the Customs Hotline on 0800 595000, or your local trading standards or police.”