Derby shopkeeper had hidden James Bond vault to hide tobacco and vapes | UK News

The owners of one shop had gone to extraordinary lengths to try and keep the dodgy products hidden, installing a kitchen counter on hydraulic legs that would raise and lower at the push of a button (Picture: DerbyCityCouncilTradingStd/SWNS)

Police raided a shop and found more than £10,000 worth of illegal tobacco, cigarettes and vapes hidden in a secret James Bond-style compartment under the floor.

Officers along with a trading standards team found the illicit stash at a shop in Derby thanks to a sniffer dog picking up a scent.

Officials discovered the shopkeeper had installed a fake kitchen counter on hydraulic legs that would raise and lower at the push of a button.

A hidden chamber, built under the floor, would rise up revealing the bags of illegal tobacco, cigarettes and vapes.

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The discovery was made during a raid in the shop’s storeroom on November 7.

Derby City Council said some criminals were going to ‘extraordinary lengths’ to try and keep illicit tobacco hidden from officials.

Over the past year, the council’s trading standards team have seized 791,000 cigarettes and almost 140kg of hand rolling tobacco.

An additional 5,082 illegal vapes have also been taken off the shelves, the council said.

The secret compartment that rises up under a cabinet. Release date - November 17 2023. See SWNS story SWMRtobacco. Shopkeeper hid ?10k worth of illicit tobacco and vapes in James Bond-style secret compartment. On Tuesday 7 November officers carried out a joint operation with Derbyshire Police and a sniffer dog searching premises across Derby. Usually, they can expect to find illicit products hidden behind skirting boards or cupboards. The owners of one shop had gone to extraordinarily lengths to try and keep the dodgy products hidden, installing a kitchen counter on hydraulic legs that would raise and lower at the push of a button. — The secret compartment that rises up under a cabinet (Picture: DerbyCityCouncilTradingStd /SWNS)

Councillor Shiraz Khan, cabinet member for Housing, Property and Regulatory Services, said: ‘These products undermine the health of adults and children around the city, but we will continue to work hard tackling this issue.

‘It is reassuring to know that no matter how elaborate the hiding places may become, our officers, and their partners, are able to track down and seize these illicit products before they reach citizens.’

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