An Oldham shopkeeper has been fined after an illegal stash of cigarettes and tobacco was found stashed in the basement of his premises.
After a string of complaints from members of the public that illicit or counterfeit tobacco was being sold at Timisoara, on Ashton Road, Oldham Council has confirmed that officers from Oldham Trading Standards and a trained sniffer dog raided the shop, and a total of 22,557 mixed brand cigarettes were uncovered.
100gm of illegal hand rolling tobacco was also seized from the premises.
The illegal cigarettes and tobacco were found stashed and hidden in a number of locations throughout the shop – including in a concealment behind the counter, in an adapted jacket and a holdall, and in the basement.
The owner of the shop, 39-year-old Sardar Mohammed, pleaded guilty to offences under the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015, as well as an offence under the Trade Marks Act 1994, and was told to pay costs of £3,450 and a £95 victim surcharge.
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He was also sentenced to an 18-month community order that requires him to attend 30 days rehabilitation activity requirement, and 180 hours of unpaid work.
Officers from Oldham Trading Standards and a trained sniffer dog raided Timisoara on Ashton Road / Credit: Google Maps
“Thanks to good work by our Trading Standards staff, and tip offs from residents, a large haul of illegal cigarettes has been seized,” explained Councillor Jean Stretton, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods at Oldham Council.
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“Illegal tobacco makes it easier for children and young people to buy cigarettes and get hooked on smoking and the people making money out of this do not care who they sell to and the illegal tobacco trade has strong links with organised crime.”
She continued: “We are working with partners across Greater Manchester to drive down the illegal trade and the market is declining – but it still goes on.”
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Oldham Council is asking local residents to keep an eye out, and where they see cheap tobacco being sold, often as ‘duty free’, are encouraged to get in touch and report it either anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, or online at keep-it-out.co.uk.
“We will take action if we find illegal tobacco for sale,” the Council insists.
Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Featured Image – Pxhere
News
Stockport man jailed for life after kidnapping and sexually assaulting teenage girl
Emily Sergeant
A Stockport man has been sentenced to life in prison after kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl on her way home from the library.
Paul Sharpe has been sentenced to life imprisonment with an eight-year minimum term in prison after being convicted of a number of offences when subjected a teenage girl to what police called a ‘terrifying ordeal’ that lasted several hours back in May 2026.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that the victim had been studying at Sale Library before beginning her journey home with friends at around 5:50pm and contacting her parents at 6:10pm to let them know she was on her way.
Twenty minutes later, she spoke to her boyfriend on the phone and said she was approximately five minutes away from home, but that her phone battery was about to die.
This was the last contact received from the victim that evening.
While walking along Bradgate Road in Altrincham, the victim noticed a grey Ford parked nearby and a man wearing a high-visibility jacket pressing doorbells in the area.
As she walked past, Sharpe approached her from behind, placed her in a headlock and threatened to stab her if she did not get into his vehicle.
Concerned that their daughter had not returned home, the victim’s family contacted police at 9:22pm to report her missing, and officers immediately launched an investigation to locate her.
Over the next several hours, the victim was subjected to and placed in a number of terrifying situations.
Sharpe drove the victim to several locations across Greater Manchester and Cheshire, before police located and arrested him at around 3:40am on 19 May 2026.
Following his arrested, 56-year-old Sharpe was convicted of kidnap, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, threats with a bladed article, and administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, annoy or aggrieve.
“This was a terrifying ordeal for a young girl who was simply making her way home,” explained Detective Inspector Karl Perry, from GMP’s Criminal Investigation Department.
“Sharpe targeted a vulnerable victim, subjected her to hours of fear and intimidation, and went on to sexually assault her.
“The victim has shown immense courage throughout the investigation and court proceedings. Through her bravery and actions, she no doubt made it harder for Sharpe to carry out whatever acts he had planned.”
Emily Sergeant -
27th June 2022 
