A South Gloucestershire shopkeeper has been jailed for selling illegal disposable vapes to customers. Tahsin Jasem of Warmley, sole director of Jyar Limited, previously pleaded guilty to being in possession of 518 illegal e-cigarette devices to be supplied to customers.
The sentencing hearing at Bristol Magistrates’ Court, held on Monday, December 9, heard how Jasem owned the convenience store International Store, in Kingswood. In April 2023, South Gloucestershire Council’s Trading Standards team received a complaint that the store sold illegal e-cigarettes.
On visiting the shop in May 2023, they found devices labelled to contain up to eight times the 2ml legal limit of nicotine e-liquid and a declared strength two-and-a-half times the 20 mg/ml (2 percent) legal limit. Trading Standards also seized a number of illegal e-cigarettes found hidden beneath the floorboards.
After pleading guilty on May 13, 2024, Jasem was sentenced to two months in prison at Bristol Magistrates’ Court on December 9. He was also ordered to pay costs totalling £3109.71 and required to pay a £154 victim surcharge. His company, Jyar Limited received a £923 fine and was required to pay a £369 victim surcharge.
Councillor Sean Rhodes, cabinet member responsible for the Trading Standards service at South Gloucestershire Council, said: “The council’s Trading Standards officers have been undertaking checks to ensure only legally compliant e-cigarettes that have undergone the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) submission and notification process are supplied to customers. During the last three years we have seized over 9,500 illegal disposable e-cigarette devices with a retail value of over £76,000.
“Although vaping is considered far safer than smoking traditional tobacco products, inhaling nicotine through a device is not risk free. Legislation is in place to regulate products that are placed on the market. Most retailers only sell e-cigarette products that comply with law, however we will not hesitate to prosecute retailers who choose to put profit before compliance.”
Anyone who suspects they may have been sold, or is aware of a business supplying non-compliant disposable e-cigarettes are urged to report it to Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service website or on 0808 223 1133, or by reporting it anonymously via the Trading Standards South West website.