More than 80,000 illegal cigarettes have been seized after a crackdown by police and Medway Council's Trading Standards.

Officers from both authorities visited various retailers in Chatham with specially trained tobacco sniffer dogs on Friday.

In one shop the dogs found goods in the basement and hidden panels in the shop counter.

The council's team discovered a total of 82,000 cigarettes and 19 kilos of hand rolling tobacco.

Medway Council’s portfolio holder covering enforcement, Cllr Jane Chitty, said: “This incredible discovery of £37,000 of illegal tobacco would not have been possible without the hard work of our team and Kent Police.

"We are committed to taking action against anyone who chooses to trade in illegal tobacco.

"There is no place for organised criminality in Medway and this weekend of enforcement activity shows how closely we work with partner agencies to identify offenders and prevent money going into criminal hands.

"These cigarettes and tobaccos can be extremely dangerous I would encourage residents to continue to report shops selling counterfeit cigarettes to us.”

Sergeant Liz Jarvis, from the Medway Community Safety Unit, said: "Operations such as this highlight importance of working closely with the council to keep the towns safe.

"In addition to the cigarettes, our officers were able to carry out weapon and alcohol sweeps at locations known to be affected by antisocial behaviour.

"As a result of this work in Chatham, Gillingham and Rochester high streets, five people had alcohol confiscated and one person was arrested for a public order offence.

"Our partnership work will continue throughout the year to help prevent antisocial behaviour and keep Medway safe.”

• For more information, and to report the sale of illegal tobacco, visit www.medway.gov.uk/illegaltobacco or call 01634 334455.

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