Arkani Muradi is serving a 26-month prison sentence following a local trading standards and HMRC raid which discovered more than a third of a million illicit cigarettes hidden in his store and a rented storage unit.
This was the third time the 36-year old Wolverhampton shopkeeper from Great Barr, Birmingham had been caught selling large quantities of illicit tobacco and alcohol.
Despite attempt to mislead HMRC officers with fake identities, including pretending to be just a sales assistant during the raid, he was recognised when the fake identity used in the store was the same as another they’d previously found.
Arkani Muradi had also used a hole behind a gantry, under the floor, in the wall and under a fridge to try and hide the illicit stock. Images released by HMRC show hundreds of illicit Chesterfield, Goal and Marlboro 20 packs, all with foreign health warnings.
Community tip-offs were vital in helping the initial investigation against his store – Euroshop. Richard Young from HMRC’s fraud investigation service said: “Muradi made elaborate attempts to evade capture and continued to trade in illicit tobacco and alcohol stealing from taxpayers and honest retailers.
"But, despite his efforts, officers were able to prove he was responsible for the fraud.” He added: “We encourage anyone with information about the illegal sale of tobacco or alcohol to contact the Fraud Hotline.”
In just the last incident alone, Arkani Muradi was found with 380,541 illegal cigarettes, 36.3 kg of hand rolling tobacco and 195 bottles of non-duty paid alcohol, with an estimated tax loss of £99,302.
He plead guilty to fraudulent evasion of excise duty and additional charges for trade mark infringement, identity fraud, and unfair trading.
A confiscation hearing will take place soon to determine what assets will be confiscated as the proceeds of crime.
A recent report from JTI unveiled the scale of the illicit tobacco issue, finding one in eight London retailers to be selling illicit cigarettes or pouches.
The company's anti-illegal trade director Steve Wilkins told Retail Express: “JTI is committed to tackling the sale of illegal tobacco, and continues to work with law enforcement bodies to find and punish those selling illegal tobacco, both in stores and on social media channels, as part of a commitment to law abiding tobacco retailers and the category as a whole.
"As part of this, we have removed the gantry from 28 retailers found to have been selling illegal tobacco since 2014, and in 2016 saw a total of 247 prosecutions and 125 seizures relating to the illegal tobacco market."
Wilkins also called for other category partners in the distribution chain to stop supporting retailers caught selling illegal tobacco.
Do it: Report illicit trade near your store by calling the HMRC fraud hotline on 0800 788 887
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