The occupants of a town centre store closed by Trading Standards have been evicted from the premises by the owner.
The New Road Mini Mart in Chippenham received a three-month closure notice after hundreds of illegal goods were recovered during a raid last November.
This injunction was imposed by Swindon Magistrates Court in December 2024.
During the closure period, only named habitual inhabitants are permitted to enter the address, and anyone who violates these limits may face prosecution, fines, or even imprisonment.
More than a month later, West Country Bailiffs have placed signs to the property’s windows informing tenants that the landlord has reclaimed the rental property.
The notification stated: “The landlord has taken ownership of these premises today through peaceful re-entry.
“The landlord was entitled to take possession under the terms of the lease and has now exercised that power.
“The lease has therefore been determined with immediate effect.”
Anyone who visits the address without the landlord’s permission will be considered to be trespassing.
Trading Standards and police seized illicit vape and tobacco goods during a raid at New Road Mini Mart, prompting the interim closure.
Officers responded with a sniffer dog in November and seized 99 vapes, 390 cigarette packets, and 82 tobacco pouches.
Many of these items, including £4,740 in cash, were hidden behind a false panel in the wall controlled by electromagnets.
At the time, Rex Vape Station Ltd in Devizes and Milksham Vape & Shop in Melksham were both served with closure orders for selling illegal substances.
Cllr Dominic Muns, cabinet member for the environment, stated that the council’s Trading Standards team discovered “concerning” breaches of the law.
He added: “Our Trading Standards staff is working extremely hard to combat illicit sales in Wiltshire, and these closure orders are a fantastic outcome for the team.
“The investigation into these businesses revealed some very concerning breaches and incidents, so our officers deemed it necessary to serve the closure orders.”
“This closure order and subsequent prosecution demonstrate that we are carrying out our business plan commitment to protect our residents and take action against businesses that are not following the law.”
“I’d also like to thank Wiltshire Police for their assistance in this case and also our colleagues in the Public Health team who helped with the funding for the tobacco detection dogs that we use in the raids.”
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