Britain’s police forces aren’t doing enough to clampdown on a crime gang linked to Triads which is believed to be operating across the country, according to a former senior detective.
Dave McKelvey said his private investigation firm had prosecuted four members of the China based group, involved in producing dangerous fake tobacco, because neither police nor HMRC chose to take on the case.
TM Eye uncovered the crime network after it was asked by a tobacco manufacturer to investigate a seizure at Stansted Airport of thousands of empty fake tobacco pouches that arrived from Hong Kong.
The empty holders are imported by the group before tobacco from an unknown source is used to fill them. They are then heat wrapped in plastic to appear like a genuine product, before being distributed for sale, often through small shops.
Counterfeit tobacco products often contain contaminants, including asbestos, which pose severe health risks.
Although it was seized by UK Border Force, HMRC, which is responsible for investigating the smuggled and fake tobacco trade due to the billions of pounds it costs the Treasury, did not launch an investigation.
Mr McKelvey, a former Met Police DCI, said his private detectives have since spent more than five years investigating the organised crime network.
They found it to be involved in an array of crimes in London, Birmingham, Sheffield, Leeds, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
These include fake tobacco and cannabis production, as well as human trafficking. Other elements of the network appear to be involved in the sex trade and the importation of synthetic opioid fentanyl, Mr McKelvey said.
He added: “The network largely originates from the Fujian Province in China, but we have also linked it to the 14K triad group based in Hong Kong where the fake tobacco pouches were sent from.
“Our investigation continues, but it is so vast and sophisticated, we need more co-operation from HMRC. The National Crime Agency should be looking at it.”
Through TM Eye’s private prosecution four gang members were convicted of offences at Birmingham Crown Court.
Mr McKelvey said just this snapshot of fake tobacco represented a £12million revenue loss. In August 2018, Border Force officers intercepted three boxes at Stansted which arrived from Hong Kong containing 15,000 empty tobacco pouches fraudulently marked as B&H and Golden Virginia.
It commissioned TM Eye, which carried out surveillance at an address in Romford, East London, where the pouches were destined. Further surveillance led them to Birmingham and Sheffield.
In Birmingham, police and HMRC found laundry bags containing 7,868 filled fake tobacco pouches, bin bags containing 560kgs of tobacco and 220,000 empty fake pouches.
Between December 2018 and March 2019 HMRC searched six further addresses where more fake tobacco materials were found. In February, four men were convicted of distributing goods with packaging which bears signs identical to registered trademarks, while two were acquitted.
Ke Chen, 31, from Birmingham was sentenced to 22 months suspended for 18 months. Xialong Lin, 36, from Birmingham got 21 months suspended for 18 months.
Liang Jie Chen, 54, of Birmingham, got 21 months suspended for 18 months.
HMRC said: “We have a strong track record of tackling tobacco fraud with 1,500 convictions and 10 billion cigarettes seized in the last decade.”
Both the NCA and National Police Chiefs’ Council said HMRC was responsible for fighting tobacco crime, with police becoming involved when it overlapped with more serious organised crime.
