POLICE have seized thousands of pounds worth of illegal cigarettes and vapes from stores in Lye High Street.

Officers from West Midlands Police joined forces with Dudley Council’s Trading Standards team, targeting three shops identified as being involved in the supply of these illicit products.

With the help of Griff and Bran, two specially trained tobacco dogs, officers uncovered hundreds of packets secreted behind panels and in other hard-to-find places as they searched the stores.

The swoop was part of Operation Advance, a day of intense policing activity across the borough working with partners to tackle the issues that matter to residents.

Sergeant John Norgrove, Neighbourhood Policing Supervisor, said: “We were happy to work with Trading Standards on this job and are very pleased with the results. Illegally imported cigarettes and vapes often contain harmful ingredients, well above regulated legal limits, so they’re potentially very dangerous.

"We know unscrupulous shopkeepers often sell these products to young people who really don’t know what they’re consuming so it’s important we make every effort to disrupt those involved in this trade.”