A Halesowen shopkeeper and an employee have been fined after a 15 year old was sold a packet of 10 cigarettes.

The Court heard that during a routine test purchase exercise carried out by Dudley Trading Standards in September 2015, a 15 year old child was sold a packet of 10 Stirling cigarettes by Praveen Shanmugarajah, a shop assistant employed at the Premier supermarket in Windmill Lane, Halesowen.

At the time of the offence Shanmugarajah gave a false name, claiming to be the shop owner Karis Kanthasamy. 

At Dudley Magistrates earlier this month, Kanthasamy pleaded guilty to an offence under the Children and Young Persons Act of selling cigarettes to a person under the age of 18 years. He told the court he had since sacked Shanmugarajah but was given a six month conditional discharge and ordered to pay costs of £300 and a £15 victim surcharge.

Shanmugarajah failed to appear in court and was found guilty of the offence in his absence. He was fined £440 with £225 costs and £44 victim surcharge.

Nick Powell, head of environmental health and trading standards at Dudley Council, said:

“Trading standards officers regularly visit shop keepers in the borough to advise on the law relating to age restricted products such as alcohol and tobacco and we encourage sign up to the Challenge 25 scheme.

“We also carry out regular test purchases using under age volunteers to check that the law is being complied with.  Shop staff must be trained and supervised to ensure that ID is always asked for if a purchaser looks under 25 and the sale refused if no ID is produced.

"We won’t hesitate to prosecute where shop keepers do not follow the advice given as it is an important public health priority that children are not able to buy cigarettes.”