Latest news with #cigarettes
News24
a day ago
- Business
- News24
Business fined R600k, ordered to supply desks in illicit cigarette plea bargain
Dealing in counterfeit cigarettes earned Uptown Superstore Store in Mpumalanga a massive fine of R600 000 and an order to buy more than 500 desks for four Mpumalanga schools. This after the director of the business entered into a plea agreement with the State in terms of which it pleaded guilty to the Contravention of the Tobacco Products Act, Contravention of Customs and Excise Act, and Contravention of Value Added Tax Act. 'It is an interesting sentence. Criminals are again out of pocket due to their crimes. The community is benefiting from this sentence, and it will definitely assist the next generation in their needs for a better education,' the provincial head of the Hawks, Major General Nico Gerber, said. The Evander Regional Court gave the business three months to comply with the order, Hawks spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Magonseni Nkosi revealed in a statement. It has to buy 504 durable, quality double-seater desks. Meanwhile, the court withdrew charges against the owners of the business, Riaz Moolla, 42, Fatima Moolla, 62, and Suliman Ismail Moolla, 67, in their personal capacities. The business was charged after 4 710 packets of illicit cigarettes valued at R107 700 were seized from their business on 9 September last year. Riaz was arrested by the Hawks at the time, and a warrant for the arrest against Fatima and Suliman was executed on 17 July. As the director of the business, Suliman entered into the plea agreement.
BBC News
a day ago
- Business
- BBC News
Licence review for Heath Town shop over vapes and alcohol
A shop could lose its licence after being caught with illegal vapes and cigarettes, and selling alcohol without News and Off Licence in Prestwood Road, Wolverhampton, will face a review hearing by the council on 6 to the council's records, the shop has not had a named supervisor since 2023 which meant it was not permitted to sell alcohol. The store's licence was also not on display, the council council said current owner, Manjit Singh Dhillon, had told the authority the cigarettes found during a search were duty free and had been bought by his son on holiday, and that his son was in the process of getting a new copy of the licence. A report published ahead of the meeting said the shop's licence had been transferred tor Mr Dhillon in 2019 with Kokila Keshavbhai Patel listed as Mr Patel withdrew consent in 2023 which meant alcohol could not be served from the shop in Heath Town until a new supervisor was council said that officers found the shop's licence was not on display and could not be found by Mr Dhillon during several visits.A report by Wolverhampton trading standards said a licensing officer returned a week after a visit to find alcohol was still on display, despite an earlier another inspection in April, officers found 24 packets of illegal cigarettes and more than 130 oversized review has been pushed by trading standards which has asked the committee to consider revoking the licence when it meets in August. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Attic Fire leaves Grand Chute family without home, cigarettes likely cause
GRAND CHUTE, Wis. (WFRV) – Authorities say cigarettes are the likely cause of an attic fire at a home in Grand Chute on Friday evening that has left two adults and three dogs without a home. According to the Grand Chute Fire Department, crews were called to a home in the 2000 block of West Hiawatha Drive in Grand Chute just before 7 p.m. on July 25 after getting multiple 911 calls reporting heavy smoke and flames coming from the roof of the home. Equipment fire at Fond du Lac's Milk Specialties causes evacuation, suspended operations Neighbors reportedly saw the fire first and alerted the residents, who were all able to safely evacuate the home, including their pets. No injuries were reported. With help from multiple fire departments, the fire in the attic was put out from outside the house. Crews then pulled down the ceiling and soffits in several areas to be completely sure that the fire was out. The release notes that although a damage value has not been determined, it is likely that most or all of the house will need to be rebuilt. Shawano Police remind residents about city curfew ordinance in effect for minors Authorities also pointed to improper disposal of cigarettes outside the house as the unofficial cause of the fire. The fire reportedly started on the house's siding before burning to the attic and spreading. No additional information was provided. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Smoke signals: from Charli xcx's nuptials to The Bear, cigarettes are everywhere
Coffee and chocolates traditionally signal the end of a meal at a wedding. But now many couples are ditching the sweet stuff and doling out cigarettes instead. Bowls and trays piled high with fags have become the new party favour. Last weekend, guests at Charli xcx's nuptials were served Vogue Essence Bleue slim cigarettes from silver trays, and social media is peppered with wedding receptions featuring tiered dessert stands laden with smoking paraphernalia and dedicated 'smoking stations'. It can be an expensive addition to any wedding bill, considering the average cost for a packet of 20 cigarettes is now £14. Many modern brides take their inspiration from Mary-Kate Olsen, the child star turned fashion designer for The Row. In 2015, Olsen doled out mini bowls of cigarettes during her wedding to her now ex-husband Olivier Sarkozy. Emma Westblade, the editor-in-chief of the wedding planning directory the Wed, described the trend as 'a soft rebellion against the polished perfection long associated with weddings, in favour of something more unfiltered and deliberately nostalgic'. She added: 'It's controversial, yes, but it's part of a larger return to vice-coded aesthetics, plucked from the noughties and revived by gen Z for today's weddings.' At the online marketplace 1st Dibs, sales of items with cigarette, lighter, tobacco and cigar in the item title are up 11% this year compared with 2024. Trending items include 1930s cigarette dispensers, art deco cases and porcelain Hermès ashtrays from the 1980s. Getting a nicotine fix is also trending at fashion parties. In September, guests at a party in Paris for Kylie Jenner's clothing brand Khy were greeted by waiters holding silver platters of slim cigarettes and branded matches. At an event to celebrate her collaboration with the denim brand Madewell, Alexa Chung served guests ice cold martinis next to bowls of Camel Blues. And in November, at the launch of Lili Anolik's book Didion & Babitz at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont, cigarettes and lighters branded with the book's title were placed on tables. Last month, the sale of single-use vapes in England was banned. Perhaps traditional cigarettes never really went away, but they now seem to be having a resurgence. In March, research found that smoking rates in parts of England had increased for the first time since 2006. This is despite the fact that smoking is widely known to increase the risk of cancer and 94% of UK adults recognise this. The trend is also reflected in pop culture. Singers Lorde and Addison Rae both mention smoking in their recent singles, and Sabrina Carpenter uses a fork as a cigarette holder in the video for her new song, Manchild. In June, just before France's new smoking ban, Beyoncé lit up a cigarette on stage in Paris during her Cowboy Carter tour. Charli xcx was photographed smoking outside her wedding reception, while Dua Lipa and Paul Mescal are regularly spotted with a fag in hand. On screen, Seema (Sarita Choudhury) smokes everywhere in And Just Like That, including in her bed. Dakota Johnson's character, Lucy, is rarely without a cigarette in her new film The Materialists, and in the latest series of The Bear, even anti-smoker Sydney attempts to light up. Jared Oviatt who runs the Instagram account Cigfluencers described cigarettes as 'kind of like blue jeans. They've survived every trend cycle you can imagine.' Citing generational factors as playing a role in smoking's revival, Oviatt added: 'The dream of stability, owning a home, financial security feels increasingly out of reach. So the question becomes: why not do what you want? Why not smoke? Nothing matters!'
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Smoke signals: from Charli xcx's nuptials to The Bear, cigarettes are everywhere
Coffee and chocolates traditionally signal the end of a meal at a wedding. But now many couples are ditching the sweet stuff and doling out cigarettes instead. Bowls and trays piled high with fags have become the new party favour. Last weekend, guests at Charli xcx's nuptials were served Vogue Essence Bleue slim cigarettes from silver trays, and social media is peppered with wedding receptions featuring tiered dessert stands laden with smoking paraphernalia and dedicated 'smoking stations'. It can be an expensive addition to any wedding bill, considering the average cost for a packet of 20 cigarettes is now £14. Many modern brides take their inspiration from Mary-Kate Olsen, the child star turned fashion designer for The Row. In 2015, Olsen doled out mini bowls of cigarettes during her wedding to her now ex-husband Olivier Sarkozy. Emma Westblade, the editor-in-chief of the wedding planning directory the Wed, described the trend as 'a soft rebellion against the polished perfection long associated with weddings, in favour of something more unfiltered and deliberately nostalgic'. She added: 'It's controversial, yes, but it's part of a larger return to vice-coded aesthetics, plucked from the noughties and revived by gen Z for today's weddings.' At the online marketplace 1st Dibs, sales of items with cigarette, lighter, tobacco and cigar in the item title are up 11% this year compared with 2024. Trending items include 1930s cigarette dispensers, art deco cases and porcelain Hermès ashtrays from the 1980s. Getting a nicotine fix is also trending at fashion parties. In September, guests at a party in Paris for Kylie Jenner's clothing brand Khy were greeted by waiters holding silver platters of slim cigarettes and branded matches. At an event to celebrate her collaboration with the denim brand Madewell, Alexa Chung served guests ice cold martinis next to bowls of Camel Blues. And in November, at the launch of Lili Anolik's book Didion & Babitz at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont, cigarettes and lighters branded with the book's title were placed on tables. Last month, the sale of single-use vapes in England was banned. Perhaps traditional cigarettes never really went away, but they now seem to be having a resurgence. In March, research found that smoking rates in parts of England had increased for the first time since 2006. This is despite the fact that smoking is widely known to increase the risk of cancer and 94% of UK adults recognise this. The trend is also reflected in pop culture. Singers Lorde and Addison Rae both mention smoking in their recent singles, and Sabrina Carpenter uses a fork as a cigarette holder in the video for her new song, Manchild. In June, just before France's new smoking ban, Beyoncé lit up a cigarette on stage in Paris during her Cowboy Carter tour. Charli xcx was photographed smoking outside her wedding reception, while Dua Lipa and Paul Mescal are regularly spotted with a fag in hand. On screen, Seema (Sarita Choudhury) smokes everywhere in And Just Like That, including in her bed. Dakota Johnson's character, Lucy, is rarely without a cigarette in her new film The Materialists, and in the latest series of The Bear, even anti-smoker Sydney attempts to light up. Jared Oviatt who runs the Instagram account Cigfluencers described cigarettes as 'kind of like blue jeans. They've survived every trend cycle you can imagine.' Citing generational factors as playing a role in smoking's revival, Oviatt added: 'The dream of stability, owning a home, financial security feels increasingly out of reach. So the question becomes: why not do what you want? Why not smoke? Nothing matters!'
