Police raided stores on Oxford Street (Picture: Westminster City Council)
Cops and trading standards raided toy and sweet shops on Oxford Street and found more than £200,000 worth of fake goods.
The stores on London’s most famous shopping street have been accused of being at the centre of a tax-evasion scandal.
Yesterday a joint operation staffed by investigators from HMRC and Westminster City Council, alongside local police, targeted seven shops.
They included the American-themed stores that have dogged the area for months.
Oxford Street based Met officers proudly showed off a picture of items seized, declaring ‘Playtime’s over.’
The council said it seized more than 14,000 items yesterday with an estimated value of £215,000 from two shops.
American candy shops were raided and found to be selling fake goods (Picture: Westminster City Council)
Wonka bars were among the fake goods found by officers (Picture: Westminster City Council)
Thousands of fake Rolexes and sweets were found in the shops (Picture: Westminster City Council)
Some stores – which have been accused of evading £8million in business rates – have been found flogging fake Wonka chocolate bars and Rolexes.
In one shop, named Gifts and Luggage, the focus appeared to be on a wall of cigarettes containing more nicotine than the level allowed in the UK.
More were found in a cupboard in a room at the back of the shop.
Some London candy shops are also selling sweets that are so sweet they would be illegal to manufacture in the UK.
Cllr Adam Hug, leader of Westminster City Council, said: ‘The latest raid on candy and souvenir stores has netted £215,000 of suspected fake and unsafe goods – from illegally strong vapes to designer fakes.
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‘It is part of an ongoing campaign by the City Council to ensure people on Oxford Street get what they pay for.
‘This was one of a series of multi-agency operations supported by the Metropolitan police which allows us as a local authority to keep taking effective action.
‘We all know there has been an explosion of these stores on Oxford Street. We are currently investigating 30 candy and souvenir stores for what we believe is business rates evasion in the region of £8 million.
‘The reality is these stores are a threat to the status and value of what is supposed to be the nation’s premier shopping street.’
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Police and trading standards raided shops in Oxford Street yesterday, targeting stores selling fake goods.