Unregulated erectile dysfunction drugs were among the contraband items found during a raid on west London shops that led to arrests.
Among the seized pharmaceuticals was flavoured Sildenafil Kamagra Oral Jelly.
Manufactured in India, Kamagra is an erectile dysfunction tablet sold unlawfully online. It is not approved for sale in the UK or the European Union.
Kamagra is reported to function similarly to Viagra – a well-known drug brand that is available in lower doses over the counter following a health assessment – due to sharing the same primary active ingredient, sildenafil.
But there are health risks because of insufficient information regarding its precise contents and potential side effects.
Police and Trading Standards with the seized goods
Hounslow Council
A second unregulated erectile dysfunction treatment, Sildamax Sildenafil tablets – also produced in India – was discovered in the high street shops during the inspections.
During the operation, police officers confiscated controlled substances and made several arrests. Inquiries into the discoveries are ongoing.
The seizures included 1,019 packets of illicit cigarettes that amounted to more than 20,000 individual smokes, 440 pouches of hand rolling tobacco, 813 packets of oral tobacco products, 445 vapes, 492 packets and sachets of medicines and 27 pouches of shisha tobacco.
Trading Standards said unregulated and illicit tobacco and vapes carry significant consumer hazards as they often bypass safety standards and may contain unidentified ingredients.
Erectile dysfunction drugs were among the goods siezed
Hounslow Council
Hounslow Council said such goods are frequently manufactured in unsanitary conditions and sold well below the cost of legitimate products.
The supply of counterfeit tobacco is routinely connected to organised criminal activity, said the local authority, including human trafficking, drugs, and illegal immigration.
Councillor Amy Croft, cabinet member for enforcement, said: "The sale of illicit tobacco, unregulated vapes, counterfeit products and unsafe medicines puts consumers at risk and undermines the many responsible businesses that operate within the law.
“Residents have a right to expect that the products being sold in our communities are safe and legitimate.
"My message to rogue traders is clear: we will continue to pursue and disrupt this activity wherever we find it."
Members of the public who suspect the sale of illegal tobacco, counterfeit goods, or unsafe products can report them via email or anonymously through Citizens Advice.