‘Success is shutting them down’: Met police in fight against illegal vape and phone shops

A rainbow of vapes and Apple-branded products light up the window of a south London shop as a small army of police prepare to march through the door. Officers have been watching the shop for months and have already carried out tests in independent labs on products bought there. Most have come back with a high risk rate for possible electrocution and fires. Many of the products are illegal, after a law passed in June banned the sale of single-use vapes, a move designed to combat environmental damage and their widespread use by children. The shop is one of six electrical goods outlets, all within a short distance of each other in Lambeth, being targeted by a team of about 80 people from the Metropolitan police, HM Revenue and Customs, the local authority and Trading Standards. The raids are part of Operation Machinize 2, a nationwide crackdown on high street crime, targeting cash intensive businesses in the “grey economy” that police believe are linked to money laundering. The National Crime Agency, the body responsible for fighting serious and organised crime, helped plan the raids of more than 2,700 premises, leading to 924 arrests. Police seized more than £10.7m of suspected illegal proceeds, 111,000 illegal vapes, 70kg of cannabis and 4.5m illegal cigarettes. The walls of the south London shop appear to be lined with Apple products – though the trademark representative and police officers quickly spot that the serial numbers on each box, which should be individual to each item, are all identical. It is a clear giveaway that the products are counterfeit. Inspector Oliver Lamb, who has worked for the force for more than 12 years, is overseeing the operation in Lambeth. “It’s not the first time we have been to some of these shops – for some it’s been the third visit this year,” Lamb says. In the past the police have raided shops, only to find later that the managers have simply restocked their shelves with the same products after they have left. “Originally we thought that removal of the stock would be a significant enough message to the retailers, and to explain to them you can’t do this, and why you can’t do this, and you’re going to lose it soon. “When we came [here] earlier this year we seized £18,200 worth of Apple products alone, and that doesn’t include the vapes which were probably equal in volume. So it didn’t disrupt them – I thought it would prevent it and it didn’t.” Companies House documents show that the small shop is connected to multiple companies – including one that is now dissolved under the name of the current proprietor. As police rifle through his stock he protests at various points that the products are genuine, arguing with a trademark representative from Apple who has accompanied the police. Still, the police end up filling evidence bags with Apple-branded AirPods, chargers and cables, all of which appear to be counterfeit, as well as bags of disposable vapes. Police say the shops are often used to hide other illegal stores in secret rooms, and so officials search for hidden compartments under the counter. No rooms are found, though the officers end up seizing more than £3,000 worth in cash from the till. Not all the electrical goods shops in this corner of south London are illegitimate, although the NCA has made clear there is a serious issue on a national level. The reception from local residents is mixed – during the raid a passerby records the raid on his phone while shouting at the large police presence: “What the fuck are you pigs doing here? Haven’t you got anything better to do?” Others seem unperturbed: a woman eats her lunch at the next counter while the police question another business owner in the complex. Several customers continue to come into the store to buy products from the business, including a vape. But Lamb insists the presence of the shops are a source of public frustration, not to mention a risk to public health. By the end of the raid the police have spoken to witnesses at a big retailer nearby who say they regularly see the shop selling disposable vapes to children. “[Counterfeit goods] are a source of public frustration. They buy the product, they find it’s fake and then they’ve got no consumer rights,” says Lamb. “We’ve got chargers, watches, counterfeit Apple goods and AirPods by the bag load, as well as counterfeit vapes, which is quite concerning as we’ve got no idea what people are inhaling from it. “Success is shutting these businesses down and making way for legitimate ones.” Officers say Machinize 2 is the largest operation of its kind focusing on the grey economy. An estimated £2.7m of illicit goods have been destroyed as a result of the raids, and more than 450 businesses reported to Companies House for further investigation. “Depriving criminals of their source of income has a real impact, limiting the amount of funds they can reinvest in further offending and deterring them from taking spaces on our high street that could be used by legitimate businesses,” says Rachael Herbert, the director of the NCA’s national economic crime centre.