Crime · 11 November 2025
Met Police Launch Major Crackdown on Illegal Vape and Phone Shops Across London
Photo by Geoffrey Moffett on Unsplash
Metropolitan Police and National Crime Agency conducted extensive raids on over 2,700 vape shops, phone stores, and other cash-intensive businesses suspected of criminal activity. Operation Machinize resulted in 924 arrests and seizure of over £10 million across the UK. Officers targeted businesses selling counterfeit products, illegal vapes exceeding nicotine limits, and shops acting as fronts for money laundering, drug dealing, and immigration violations. In London raids, police discovered fake Apple products and illegal tobacco worth thousands.
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