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A Liscard shop owner has been ordered to close his shop for three months. A district judge said he was running a "shoddy ship" and was "entirely satisfied that criminal activity had taken place that caused serious nuisance to the public", according to the Wirral View.
Liscard Convenience Store on Liscard Road became the 20th premises in Wirral to be hit with a Closure Order as part of a partnership crackdown on illegal tobacco and vape sales. Owner Hiwa Karimi was also ordered to pay £1,500 in costs at Liverpool Magistrates Court.
The case against the business started in January 2025 when a Trading Standards officer carried out a test purchase. He was sold a packet of duty-free cigarettes for five pounds. Another inspection took place that uncovered 114 illicit or non-compliant vapes, as well as eight packets of illicit or fake cigarettes.
Karimi signed an enforcement undertaking and agreed to the destruction of the seized goods.
The shop owner was warned; however, a year later, more illegal cigarettes were discovered behind the counter, and foreign drink and food products with foreign labels with no English information. These reports were made in February 2026. Another concern that came up was related to one staff member possibly not being able to work in the UK.
A few months later, in June, Trading Standards conducted a test purchase and were sold fake Lambert & Butler cigarettes for five pounds. According to reports, the cigarettes were taken from the staff member's jacket pocket, rather than from the shop display.
A joint inspection by Trading Standards and Merseyside Police on 14 July identified additional breaches, including tobacco products being openly displayed when they should have been concealed from public view.
A Closure Order was then applied for following the investigation.
Councillor Jenny Johnson, Chair of Wirral Council's Tourism, Communities, Culture and Leisure Committee, said: "This latest action is further evidence that our Trading Standards service is absolutely committed to tackling anyone involved in illegal trading, working alongside the police to act on information and intelligence received and liaising closely with our legal team so they can present the strongest case at court.
She continued, "It is vital that we find and seize these goods to get them off the market and ultimately bring offenders to justice. These cut-price and unregulated products carry additional risks to consumers and are more accessible to underage customers - significantly undermining public health’s efforts around tobacco control and cessation."
Ms. Johnson also said there are links between the illicit trade of cigarettes and wider organised crime, and pointed out the dangers of illegal items being available to shoppers.
Chief Inspector Dave Morgan of Merseyside Police said: "This Closure Order sends a clear message that the illegal sale of tobacco and vapes will not be tolerated in Wirral. Despite repeated interventions and opportunities to comply with the law, this business continued to engage in criminal activity that had a detrimental impact on the local community."
Anyone with information about illegal trading can report it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
