£2k fine for selling fake vodka in shop
THE owners of an off-licence caught selling fake vodka have been left stunned after being ordered to pay almost £2,000 by a court.
Married couple Pritpal Singh and Sukihwinder Kaur were taken to court by Staffordshire Trading Standards.
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SCENE: Talke News.
It comes after the couple's Talke News store was raided by trading standards last year in a counterfeit alcohol crackdown.
The Newcastle Road store was banned from selling alcohol for two weeks by councillors on Newcastle Borough Council's licensing committee in July for selling the fake booze.
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Now the couple have been ordered to pay £1,906.86 in fines and costs after admitting three trading standards offences.
Singh and Kaur were both ordered to pay a £465 fine and £473 costs when they appeared at Stafford Magistrates' Court.
Singh bought the alcohol from two men who came into his shop in October.
Following the court case, the 54-year-old said: "We get so many people coming into the store trying to sell us things and I had no reason to suspect these men.
"They said the alcohol was left over from their store, which had closed."
Singh bought two cases of Admiral Vodka for £80 – only for it to be seized three days later by trading standards.
Tests revealed it contained seven times the legal maximum levels of methanol for human consumption.
Singh added: "We are surprised by the amount we've been fined because we only made one mistake and we admitted it.
"We never set out to kill anybody for the sake of making more money."
Customer Tom Hasall, aged 26, of Unity Way, Talke, said: "I've never had any complaints and always pop in to the shop. "They've admitted they did something wrong and should be given the chance to move on."
Trading standards officers visited 400 businesses in their fake booze crackdown. They found counterfeit alcohol in 73 stores and seized more than 1,800 bottles of booze.
Staffordshire County Council's cabinet member for communities Councillor Pat Corfield said: "Selling counterfeit alcohol demonstrates a serious disregard for the law and to the communities these businesses serve.
"We need to protect the people in our communities from those who will exploit and endanger them for a quick buck.
"Fake alcohol is extremely dangerous and can cause lifelong disabilities which was recognised by the magistrates. "The fines should be a clear warning to other businesses and retailers considering selling counterfeit alcohol."
Comments
by camband
Thursday, September 13 2012, 11:14PM
“How's that Tesco ADVERT go (on the side of their trucks) -YOU SHOP WE DROP.
These type of 'corner shops' might put up -'YOU SHOP -YOU DROP.....DEAD'.”
by stevenweiss
Thursday, September 13 2012, 11:11PM
“foreigners again”
by jabbdabado
Thursday, September 13 2012, 6:04PM
“Grandads Off license in Shelton needs closing down too. Nothing but trouble at that shop.”
by scfcscfc08
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 8:54PM
“we only made one mistake" and no doubt that was being caught.
Methanol is extremely harmful to people and I think they got off lightly. Buying spirits from a dubious source could have resulted in death and then the charge and punishment would have been much higher. Traders who put a quick buck before customer safety don't belong in business.”
by DJofTNE
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 6:37PM
“"Fake alcohol is extremely dangerous and can cause lifelong disabilities which was recognised by the magistrates. "The fines should be a clear warning to other businesses and retailers considering selling counterfeit alcohol."
This scum of the earth gets away with a fine? Dont know who is worse, the scum or the judge, no deterrant at all, lock the scum up, take away his license and fine him. Simply way to stop these filth. How is fine going to stop people? They would of made more money than that by the time thay have been clocked. Expect people to be falling ill in the future as they will be at it, i think we know which ones too, boycott them. Tom hassel, you are backing these filth up with silly comments like that, you could be in a coma now because of these skiprats.”
by Anon_mow_cop
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 6:13PM
“@Johntoe
I am NOT dictating what people put here, I served in the Royal Navy to defend free speech in this country. You seem to have quite a fixation about legal/illegal drugs and chant the same mantra in every posting,personally I don't think people have the ears to listen anymore.”
by Johntoe
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 4:57PM
“And once again here we Anon_mow_cop attempting to dictate who can or can't comment here, what they can or can't comment about and what is, or isn't rational,
To most intelligent people the comparison with illegal drugs is quite clear and obvious, the MAIN reason illegal drugs kill, is because they are outside the law and un regulated and un controlled, they are ONLY supplied by criminals, (Just like fake alcohol)
a QUOTE or two from the above item, except, I have added ONE word, (in brackets,)
"Staffordshire County Council's cabinet member for communities Councillor Pat Corfield said: "Selling counterfeit alcohol (DRUGS) demonstrates a serious disregard for the law"
"We need to protect the people in our communities from those who will exploit and endanger them for a quick buck"
"Fake alcohol (DRUGS) is extremely dangerous and can cause lifelong disabilities which was recognised by the magistrates,"
Fortunately cases like this are quite rare, why is that do you think? (DO you think?) Could it be because alcohol 'users' can walk into a legally licenced outlet and buy the wet drug quite legally?
Hence very few people die due to buying 'dodgy' alcohol?
So, you see, (but probably not) my previous comments were VERY relevant to this story,.... IF, of course, I have your approval to be allowed to express my opinion, I do hope you will try your best not to,.. tell me what I think, OR to put words in my mouth like you usually do.”
by Alberus
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 3:29PM
“This is why we have Trading Standards, to prevent people like this making a fast buck out of selling unsuspecting people goods which could cause serious illness or death. It is better of course to buy stuff from reputable shops, but people should be confident in a product bought from anywhere in this day and age without any fear of of being poisoned. This will cause a drop in trade at this shop, but the owners have only themselves to blame I'm afraid.”
by muzzer57
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 3:18PM
“Buy brand names from major retailers simples, if its got a dodgy name and its cheap then its obviously to good to be true.”
by Peter2010
Wednesday, September 12 2012, 2:51PM
“The only way to ensure the public feel safe to buy alcohol in a local shop is to know that if a shopkeeper is caught selling this rubbish then they lose their licence to sell alcohol altogether.
At the moment, I for one, would only buy alcohol brands from High Street chain stores.
Shopkeepers prepared to take risks have ruined the good name of all small single branch shops.”