Shop closed after complaints over 'illicit items'

The closure order will last until the end of September

A corner shop has been temporarily shut by police after complaints it was selling "illicit items" such as illegal vapes to children.

Whittlesey Local Store on the town's Market Street in Cambridgeshire was issued with a partial closure order on Tuesday.

It remains in place until 30 September and means no trading can take place on the premises before then.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary made the application to Peterborough Magistrates' Court for the order after what it described as "persistent issues" in the shop.

'Detrimental effects'

PC James Rice, who applied for the closure order, said this included the sale of illegal vapes to children and products where duty had not been paid.

"Circumstances such as these are often a front for organised criminality and anti-social behaviour which has detrimental effects in our communities," he said.

The shop front for Whittlesey Local Store advertises itself as selling groceries and "pound shop bargains".

The order allows only certain people to enter the shop including the landlord, the legal tenant, emergency workers and those from the local authority.

Breaching the order is a criminal offence and could lead to imprisonment of up to three months, a fine or both.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary said anyone who thinks the order is not being observed should contact them online or by calling 101.