Shop hits back as police cites drug problems in the area to refuse licence

West Midlands Police have urged the council to refuse an alcohol licence to a shop in Lozells, arguing that it would only add to the levels of crime in the area.

Drug dealers operating on one Lozells street are hiding drugs ‘in letterboxes, in empty coffee cups and underneath vehicles’, the force revealed.

However the shop has hit back, claiming that the police evidence is focussed on the area itself, rather than the shop in particular.

And the owners of 24/7/365 Local believe they should be granted a licence to sell alcohol from 11am to 2am, arguing that the owner should not be punished for the location of his shop.

In evidence submitted to the licensing committee, police detailed some of the issues they had dealt with along Villa Road, Lozells, with PC Abdul Rohomon saying: “Drugs offences, robberies, weapons, antisocial behaviour, alcohol-related antisocial behaviour – it’s a raft of everything in a very small location.

“I don’t wish to stop the shop operating as a grocery store. Because there may be a need for that locally. That’s entirely legitimate, entirely feasible and entirely right.

“But what we don’t need, what we don’t want, is any more premises selling alcohol. It’s not about the hours, this is about problems we’ve got with a very small location, and how much of our limited resources are tied up dealing with that.”

Police also claim that the shop owner has not upheld the licensing objectives, having been caught displaying alcohol without a licence and not following Covid guidelines during a visit by police in January: “On the January 4 2021 officers on patrol on Villa Road have entered the premises of 109 Villa Road, trading as 24/7/365,” a police report states.

“There were four persons in the frontage of the shop and the door was open to allow access. No one within the shop was wearing face coverings, in breach of Covid regulations. There was no signage or social distancing measures in place.

“There was alcohol clearly on display on the shelves. There was no signage to indicate this was not for sale. The owner was challenged and advised about the alcohol being on display and the Covid breaches. The owner stated he understood he could not sell alcohol, and that he was not selling it. He was advised that as he did not have a licence he should not be displaying alcohol within the shop. He stated that the shop was closing shortly and that the alcohol would be removed.

“On the 5th January 2021 officers on patrol on Villa Road have entered the premises of 109 Villa Road, trading as 24/7/365. The shop still had alcohol displayed on the shelves within the store for customers to purchase.

“This also raises concerns over the premises behaving in a responsible manner.”