More than 500 fake children’s ‘squishy’ toys seized in crime crackdown

Around 12,000 counterfeit and non-duty paid cigarettes were also recovered

Thousands of cigarettes, tobacco and potentially dangerous children’s ‘squishy’ toys were seized during a day-long crime crackdown.

Council bosses in Bolton joined forces with police to launch the operation, which saw nine premises in the town visited with specialist sniffer dogs also used.

Around 12,000 counterfeit and non-duty paid cigarettes were seized, together with half a kilogram of hand-rolling tobacco and more than 500 ‘squishy’ toys that failed to meet UK safety standards.

The council estimated the value of the goods to be more than £14,500 and said investigations were ongoing.

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The operation formed part of Greater Manchester’s Operation Avro initiative.

Councillor Akhtar Zaman, the leader of Bolton Council, said: “By combining our resources and acting on intelligence from local communities, we are delivering real results, tackling crime, disrupting illegal activity and making our neighbourhoods safer places to live, work and visit.

“We would like to thank residents for their ongoing support and encourage anyone with concerns to continue reporting them so that we can take action together.”

Councillor Robert Morrisey, Bolton Council’s Executive Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services, said: “Counterfeit tobacco and non-compliant toys pose a real risk to consumers, the latter of course impacting children.

“I would like to thank our trading standards team and partner agencies for their work in removing these illegal goods from circulation and helping to keep our communities safe.”