Two workers were arrested in Dagenham after a raid revealed illegal activities, including the sale of prescription medication and illicit tobacco.
Dagenham: A recent raid at Maramureseanu on Longbridge Road led to the arrest of two workers. They found a stash of amoxicillin, an antibiotic, hidden behind a butcher counter. This was during an inspection on May 20, 2024.
Officers also discovered bottles of alcohol without the proper UK duty tax stamps and boxes of allegedly illegally imported cigarettes. After the raid, the shop faced a hefty fine of £80,000.
The shop owner, Bogdan Bota, admitted he messed up by not properly checking his workers’ statuses. He thought they were all good to go.
In a related note, the Home Office is pushing to review the shop’s premises license, with support from the Met Police and local council teams.
During a licensing hearing, it was revealed that the shop had a history of selling illicit tobacco, with undercover operations catching them in the act back in October 2021.
Trading standards reported that just days after the immigration raid, they seized 1,500 units of mixed illicit tobacco and bags of prescription meds from the shop.
Immigration officer Kathryn Briggs expressed concern over the repeated illegal activities at the premises, emphasizing the seriousness of the situation.
PC Owen Dunn stated that the breaches were obvious and that the shop’s management had shown a blatant disregard for licensing laws.
He also mentioned that they were looking to revoke the personal licenses of the shop’s holder and supervisor, Helga-Andreea Schwartzcopf.
Graham Hopkins, representing Bota, argued that losing the license would be counterproductive, especially with the £80,000 fine hanging over them.
While Bota acknowledged his mistakes, PC Dunn countered that the presence of illicit tobacco was no accident, citing multiple previous visits by authorities.
Ultimately, the sub-committee decided to revoke the shop’s license due to the illegal activities and the arrests made during the raid.
The council’s legal officer highlighted their concerns about the sale of prescription medication and the shop’s history of illicit tobacco sales.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service reached out to the shop for comments but has yet to receive a response.
