Dog helps find hundreds of illegal tablets

A sniffer dog helped discover the medication within the shop

Hundreds of tablets believed to be potentially dangerous illegal imports have been seized from a mini-market, police said.

Tablets for erectile dysfunction drug Viagra and painkiller Tramadol are only available through pharmacies or with a prescription but were found at the shop in Wolverhampton with help from a sniffer dog.

The store was inspected by the city council's trading standards team following reports they received that staff were selling illegal vapes, tobacco, cigarettes and shisha.

No arrests have been made so far as the investigation into suspected illegal goods continued, West Midlands Police confirmed.

Police said the drugs they seized were believed to be illegal imports

Seizures were also made at another shop in the city where 9,000 illegal vapes were found behind a locked toilet door and inside the owner’s car, the force said.

“I’m glad that we’ve been able to act on the information local people provided to get these items off the streets," Sgt Nicola Sephton said.

It was part of a joint operation between West Midlands Police and the council's trading standards teams and the drugs will be tested and destroyed, they said.

Councillor Zee Russell said the imported prescription drugs could be "extremely harmful or even fatal".