Rochdale man sentenced for tobacco fraud

Rochdale man, Khalid Javed, who was caught storing illegal tobacco at a family member’s home has been sentenced after an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

Officers seized 80,000 cigarettes branded as ‘King’ and 82 kilos of hand rolling tobacco, which they found behind a box of children’s toys, hidden underneath plastic sheeting in the garage.

Mike O’Grady, Assistant Director, Criminal Investigation for HMRC, said: “Javed gave a tale of woe claiming the tobacco and cannabis was left by tenants who had ‘done a bunk’ from the property that he was refurbishing for a relative. Instead of doing the right thing and reporting the illegal goods to the authorities he decided to trade in them himself. This proved to be the wrong decision as he now has a criminal record for tax evasion.”

Javed was charged with two counts of the fraudulent evasion of excise duty, totalling over £30,497, contrary to the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, on 23 January 2013.

Javed was also charged and sentenced for the production of cannabis at the same property after police seized cannabis plants at his property.