A Dagenham shop lost its license after illegal workers and stashed antibiotics were found during an inspection by immigration officers
The Home Office report revealed more issues. There were bottles of alcohol without tax stamps and boxes of illegal cigarettes. After the raid, the shop faced an £80,000 fine, and the two workers were arrested.
The shop owner, Bogdan Bota, admitted he messed up on checking his workers’ status. He thought they were all good to go. The Home Office pushed for a license review, backed by the police and local council.
During a hearing, trading standards pointed out past violations. They mentioned that illicit tobacco was sold to an undercover officer back in October 2021. Just days after the immigration raid, they seized 1,500 units of illegal tobacco and prescription meds.
Immigration officer Kathryn Briggs expressed serious concerns. She noted the repeated issues with illegal working and the stash of illicit products found over the years. Police officer Owen Dunn agreed, saying the violations were clear and serious.
Dunn also mentioned that they wanted to revoke the personal license of the shop’s supervisor, Helga-Andreea Schwartzcopf. Bota’s lawyer argued that losing the license would make it impossible to pay the hefty fine.
Bota acknowledged his mistakes in not verifying the workers’ status properly. He was waiting for the two women to provide their settled status codes. They had worked there before and returned to Romania shortly after the raid.
Bota’s lawyer claimed past issues had been fixed and that the alcohol was properly taxed. However, Dunn insisted the illegal tobacco wasn’t a one-time mistake. He pointed out that authorities had found it multiple times.
Ultimately, the sub-committee decided to revoke the shop’s license due to the illegal workers and the serious nature of the violations. They were particularly worried about the prescription medication being sold. The local news service reached out to the shop for comments but didn’t get a response.
