Trading Standards have seized close to 2,000 counterfeit cigarettes buried beneath a shop in Kensington and Chelsea.

The council team, along with Kensington and Chelsea police , swooped on a business in Earl’s Court Road on May 17.

The contraband was found buried in the basement of one shop. The 1,740 cigarettes have been confiscated and investigations are continuing.

The discovery was part of continuing work to uncover and seize counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco by Kensington and Chelsea Council ’s Trading Standards team, and saw it visit several businesses on the day.

Cllr Tim Ahern, cabinet member for environmental health, said: “The sale of illegal tobacco continues to be a cause for concern with some unscrupulous traders going to great lengths to conceal their illegal goods.

“We remain vigilant and will seek to prosecute those who break the law.”

Earlier this year sniffer dogs helped locate tobacco worth more than £2,000 seized from shops during spot checks.

And last year a trader was fined after dogs sniffed out illegal tobacco at a shop in Hammersmith.