Council bosses have revealed the huge haul of counterfeit items seized off the streets of Bolton last year.
Trading Standards teams took more than £200,000 worth of dodgy goods away from traders over the course of 2021.
Items include illegal tobacco, fake alcohol, counterfeit clothing, cosmetics, shisha pipes and even unsafe children’s toys.
READ MORE: 'Outrageous' flasher caught by police 'waving his front around' outside Piccadilly Station
Investigations have concluded that all the goods were illegal for sale in the UK and they will all now be destroyed.
Deputy council leader, Coun Hilary Fairclough, posed for a picture in front of the pile of dodgy items to show the scale of the problem enforcement teams are fighting.
“Thanks to thorough investigations by our trading standards team, this vast amount of counterfeit goods has been removed from the streets," she said.
“This sends a clear message that illegal activities will not be tolerated.
“Counterfeit and illicit goods can be dangerous and unsafe for buyers as they rarely comply with proper safety requirements. The sale of counterfeit and illicit goods also undermines legitimate local businesses.
“You might think you are buying a bargain, but you are just giving money to criminals and potentially putting yourself at risk.
“Buying counterfeit and illicit goods encourages the types of traders and businesses we want to keep out of Bolton and strengthens the hold criminals have in our communities. We urge people to think twice before they buy such goods.
“The trading standards department are focussed on disrupting these businesses into 2022 but as ever we are reliant on good quality information from members of the public who will no longer tolerate the way illegal goods affect our borough.”
If you know where counterfeit goods are being sold, you can report it to trading standards by emailing trading.standards@bolton.gov.uk
