Newsagent on trial for vape, cannabis and cigarette charges
Summary
A Cheltenham shopkeeper accused of dealing in cannabis, illegal cigarettes and disposable vapes has been committed to Gloucester Crown Court to stand jury trial.
Details
Company director Hanif Karim, 55, of Pittville Newsagents, Prestbury Road, Cheltenham, faces five charges of: possessing illegal single-use vapes for sale, supplying cigarettes without a combined health warning on the package and having cannabis with intent to supply. At Cheltenham Magistrates Court he pleaded not guilty to possession of a disposable vape on June 17, 2025, with intent to offer it for sale.
It has been illegal since June 1, 2025, for businesses to sell or supply single-use vapes. The ban was imposed last year because of the harm caused to the environment and wildlife by vapes littering streets and green spaces. The Government said at the time of the ban “Discarded vapes have a hugely damaging impact on our environment and wildlife.
Animals such as birds, fish, and marine mammals can mistake vapes for food and ingest poisonous chemicals. “Whether littered or thrown in a bin and sent to landfill, single-use vapes also release substances like lead and mercury into our soil, rivers and streams. This damages ecosystems and habitats.
“The plastics used in these products are nearly impossible for nature to completely break down. Instead, they break into tiny pieces of ‘microplastics’ which can enter our food chains.” When Karim appeared before the magistrates on Tuesday this week (28 July) he did not enter pleas to the other four charges he faces.
These allege that on the same date, June 17, 2025, he possessed 80.4 grams of cannabis with intent to supply, that he supplied electronic cigarettes containing more than 2mls of nicotine and that he supplied a tobacco product which did not carry a health warning as required by the Tobacco and Related Health Products Regulations.
The final charge alleges that on October 29 last year he had 62.2 grams of cannabis with intent to supply. The magistrates granted Karim unconditional bail pending a plea and trial preparation hearing at Gloucester Crown Court on August 28.
Report source: Punchline Gloucester