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A shop in Liscard has been closed for three months after illegal cigarettes and tobacco were found hidden inside a microwave.
Wirral Magistrates' Court granted a closure order for Everpool Shop and Vape, on Liscard Way, ruling that immediate closure was needed to stop public nuisance and criminality linked to the premises.
Police visited the shop on 25 February, shortly after it opened, and seized 1,720 illegal cigarettes and 0.75kg of illegal hand-rolling tobacco. They were found in a cupboard, inside a microwave and in a bag in the stockroom.
Wirral Council Trading Standards later visited. No illegal tobacco was found, but officers found illegal foodstuffs on sale and missing business name and age-restricted sales notices.
Further complaints led to test purchases of counterfeit cigarettes in June and October, followed by a closure notice and the court application.
Neither the company's sole director, Ahmad Husseni, nor a representative of the landlord, Azuo Property Limited, attended the hearing.
It is the 28th maximum three-month closure order secured by the council's Trading Standards and Legal Services teams since December 2025. Merseyside Police supported the application.
The court also extended the closure of Liscard Convenience, at 218 Liscard Road, for another three months, after hearing the landlord had taken no action to end the tenant's lease. That shop was first shut in August.
Councillor Jenny Johnson, chair of the council's tourism, communities, culture and leisure committee, said: "On average, the council has secured more than one closure order a fortnight over the past 10 months."
Liscard councillor Janette Williamson said: "Illegal tobacco sales are dangerous and unacceptable. They are a stain on our high street and we won't tolerate such activity in Liscard."
Anyone with information about illegal tobacco sales can report it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
