TWO off licences have had their alcohol licences suspended for a month after they were caught trying to sell dodgy drink and cigarettes.
Seven Sisters Off Licence and Tottenham Express were both rapped by Haringey Council’s licensing committee for flouting rules which ensure only safe and legal goods are sold on the borough’s high streets.
Trading Standards officers found hundreds of counterfeit Marlboro cigarettes stashed away in boxes when they visited the Seven Sisters store.
It was the second time dodgy tobacco had been found there and the owner had already been warned about the sale of fake goods.
At the Tottenham Express shop, officers discovered illicit tobacco hidden under the counter and a haul of booze which the store owner later admitted he had bought in Belgium and not paid duty on.
He claimed that the tobacco was only for personal use but this was dismissed by the licensing committee, who ordered that both store’s licences to sell alcohol be temporarily removed.
Haringey Council Cabinet Member for Environment Cllr Peray Ahmet said:
“Both these stores deliberately flouted rules that are meant to ensure that people know where the products they are buying have come from and it is only right that we take tough action.
“We are committed to making Haringey a safer, healthier place and our Trading Standards teams will continue to work tirelessly carrying out checks on venues across the borough.”