Thousands of illegal vapes worth more than £400,000 were found in a building in Salford.
Police officers and council trading standards officers busted the building - owned by an unknown company - after receiving a complaint. They found thousands of illegal disposable vapes and e-liquids hidden behind shutters.
Council bosses believe some of the vapes were being 'deliberately targeted at children', with one seized blueberry-flavoured and shaped like a toy soft drink. Some of the e-cigarettes seized also had more than twice the nicotine strength allowed.
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Officers filled three van loads with the illegal goods, including 35,000 illegal disposable vapes and 3,500 e-liquids. The estimated street value of the good is predicted to be more than £400,000.
A criminal investigation has now been launched. Salford Council said 85,000 illegal vaping products have been seized in the area since January.
Councillor Barbara Bentham, lead member for environment and community safety, said: "Some producers are cynically and deliberately designing vapes to appeal to children and it’s horrifying to find a local business buying into that exploitation. I’m very grateful to the person who complained about this, enabling our officers and police to go in and clear the shelves of these non-compliant and illegal products.
"In addition to taking action, such as prosecution, we can investigate money made illegally, in order to recover the proceeds of crime. If people have any concerns about products or sales to under 18s, they can report information to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133 so it can be investigated.
"We all need to work together, particularly to keep children and young people safe. The legal maximum tank size for a vape is 2ml, which is around 600 puffs.
"The maximum legal size for a refill bottle with nicotine is 10ml, and maximum strength of nicotine is 20mg/ml. Anything which deviates from that should be reported.
"Properly regulated vapes can be a great way for adults to stop smoking but non smokers and under 18s should not be using them because nicotine is highly addictive."
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