A dogged detective has helped the authorities sniff out 7,000 illegal cigarettes on sale in the north east.
Dixie, a specially-qualified spaniel, worked with Aberdeenshire Council’s trading standards officers and Police Scotland to investigate businesses involved in supplying illicit products.
The sniffer dog, who has been trained by Stirling Council to follow the scent of tobacco and DVD products, recently found 600 suspect cigarette packets in Aberdeen.
During her latest two-day operation in Aberdeenshire, she managed to detect tobacco hidden behind a false wall at one business.
Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards Manager, Wilma Urquhart, said: “Specially-trained tobacco detection dogs are another valuable tool in helping this service tackle the illegal tobacco trade.
“The public should avoid buying tobacco from unregulated sources where there are no controls on the production and distribution of the products; there is also strong evidence to link this illicit trade to other illegal activity.”
