Six Hervey Bay tobacco shops shut in landmark illegal cigarette case

In a landmark decision and a victory for Qld Health, six tobacco stores will be closed for months after they were raided and found to be selling illegal smokes and vapes.

Queensland Health has successfully applied to close six Hervey Bay tobacconists for months for selling illegal cigarettes and vapes in a Queensland first.

The matters of Mohammad Alfalahi, the owner of Hervey Bay Tobacconist and Gifts, Quattro Liuzzi Pty Ltd, Orsay Holdings Pty Ltd, Hardric Pty Ltd, and Imegra Pty Ltd, and Adam Ayser, who owns Shams and Yaseen Pty Ltd, were heard before Maryborough Magistrates Court on Friday, July 25.

The application to close the businesses was heard by Magistrate Trinity McGarvie.

A legal representative of Mr Alfalahi, owner of five of the stores, said his client consented to the application, which said illegal tobacco had been sold from the premises and was likely to continue in the absence of an order from the court.

Ms McGarvie ordered the businesses be closed for a period of six months, as requested in the application made by Qld Health.

Earlier in the day, Mr Ayser’s legal representative said a five-month shutdown of his business had been consented to.

Raids conducted on the stores by authorities on June 17 led to the alleged seizure of 70kg of loose tobacco, 480,000 cigarettes and 176 vapes.

Queensland Health has successfully applied to close six Hervey Bay tobacconists for months for selling illegal cigarettes and vapes in a Queensland first.

The seizures prompted Queensland Health to ask for the shops to be closed under new legislation.

Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive Debbie Carroll said the enforcement of these laws marked a significant escalation in efforts to eliminate the illegal supply of smoking products.

“The court’s decision is a landmark moment that reflects the seriousness of these offences and supports our zero-tolerance approach,” she said.

“These strengthened laws give us the tools we need, and we are using them.

“This is about protecting the public from dangerous, unregulated smoking products.”

The closures were part of a broader crackdown under strengthened laws in the Tobacco and Other Smoking Products Act, which grant increased powers to enforcement officers to disrupt the illegal tobacco market and protect community health.

Ms Carroll said WBHHS continued to take illicit tobacco very seriously with the public health team undertaking daily surveillance operations across the region, resulting in four raids this week.

Wide Bay Public Health Unit officers and Queensland Police seized enough illicit tobacco products to fill 17 bathtubs.

That included more than 220,000 cigarettes and 50kg of loose tobacco carrying a street value of more than $250,000.

The application was brought under legislation passed by state parliament about 18 months ago.

No criminal charges were laid.

Video footage of the raids showed shelves full of cigarette packets and other items being loaded into boxes that were then taped and labelled at the Main St Tobacconist.

After the seizure, Barrister Peter O’Connor appeared on behalf of Queensland Health for the first court appearance and said investigators had attended the premises and seized “a substantial quantity of commercial amounts” of illicit tobacco products.

He called the matter an “emergent and urgent community health issue”.

At the time, Ms McGarvie adjourned the matter to give all parties the chance to respond, before allowing the applications on Friday.