Shop owner gets conditional caution for selling alcohol without license

A Huddersfield shop owner was given a conditional caution after officers last week seized over £2000 worth of alcohol linked to illegal sales.

The shop in the town centre was allegedly selling alcohol without a license. It had withdrawn a license application in September after a previous raid found counterfeit cigarettes in the shop.

The joint operation involved Kirklees District Police licensing officers and the Huddersfield Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT).

Officers had told the owner that all alcohol had to be removed from display. However they said they were made aware it had continued to remain on sale.

“In this case the retailer has lost a significant and valuable amount of stock as a result of trying to sell these products when well aware they had no licence in place to do so,” said Sergeant Leon Stansfield of the Safer Kirklees Partnership.

“While we are keen to work with licensees to help them during what are tough times they should be in no doubt that we will act if we are aware of breaches occurring.”

The shop owner was given a conditional caution for keeping alcohol on premises for unauthorised sale in breach of the Licensing Act 2003.

“There are clear links between alcohol and anti-social behaviour in our communities and it is really important that retailers who sell beers, wines and spirits are properly licenced and follow the legislation for the safe and responsible sale of these products,” commented Inspector Graham Dyson of the Huddersfield NPT.