A North East driver has been handed a hefty £1,500 fine after he was caught in possession of thousands of pounds of illegal tobacco.

Kiwan Namik Ali, 46, was driving up the A1(M) in County Durham in January 2023 when he was pulled over by police.

Mr Ali, of Rawling Road in Gateshead, was stopped at junction 60 of the A1(M) at the Bradbury Interchange and admitted he had a “couple of boxes” of illegal tobacco which he was taking to somebody in Newcastle.

In his possession, the officer found 16,400 cigarettes branded Richmond, a further 13,200 branded Rothmans and 6kg of hand-rolling tobacco branded Turner.

Checks then found the products were using trademarks without authorisation and did not comply with health and packaging rules, making them counterfeit.

The court was told the products would have been worth an estimated £8,840 on the illicit market. Similar products, if sold legally, would have had a value of £18,391.

Subsequently, Mr Ali was ordered to pay £1,500 towards costs and given the 18-month Community Order with 30 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days.

The tobacco was seized and destroyed.

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Gary Carr, the council’s strategic regulation manager, said: “Illegal tobacco is damaging in many ways, including making it easier for children to smoke and bringing crime into our communities.

“Mr Ali may have been simply passing through County Durham, but the fact he had illegal tobacco in his car when he was stopped was enough for us to take action.

“We’re delighted that the court ordered the destruction of thousands of illegal cigarettes and hope this case serves as a warning that products like this will be not be tolerated anywhere in County Durham.”