Revealed: What is inside Gold Coast retailers’ hidden rooms - vapes,
A sweep of the Gold Coast has revealed secret rooms inside some retailers containing caches of illicit inventory. Here’s what authorities have found inside.
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A sweep of the Gold Coast has revealed multiple retailers with “hidden doors’ concealing a cache of illicit tobacco and vaping products.
Footage of a hidden room in a Gold Coast store has been released after targeted inspections of retailers by The Gold Coast Public Health Unit (GCPHU).
This retailer is reportedly one of many across the city with similar hidden storerooms, concealing the illegal products.
A Gold Coast Health (GCH) spokesperson said members of the public are encouraged to report what they believed to be illegal activity online.
“Dedicated environmental health officers continually undertake inspections, surveillance, and enforcement action at local retail stores,” they said.
“Community complaints about alleged breaches of Queensland’s smoking laws increased in 2024, with authorised officers responding to more than 250 reports across the Gold Coast.”
The GCH spokesperson said that each case was treated differently and different enforcement action was taken with different retailers.
“Non-compliance is considered on a case-by-case basis and a risk-based approach is taken in relation to enforcement actions,” they said.
“Activities involve educating tobacco retailers and their employees about their legal responsibilities, issuing penalties for non-compliance, and undertaking enforcement actions where required.”
Gold Coast Health reported more than one million illicit cigarettes, 241 kilograms of loose tobacco and 15,200 vapes were seized from stores across the Gold Coast by GCPHU this year.
One targeted inspection revealed a hidden room in a Gold Coast tobacconist, concealing illicit vaping products and non-complying tobacco products.
The GCH spokesperson said this hidden room was not the only one found.
“These hidden rooms were found at a few retailers, where a remote switch opened a door behind a display shelf, revealing a hidden storeroom,” they said.
“The prevalence of illicit tobacco products, particularly vape use, among minors is a concern.
“We receive complaints from community members and families about children being able to
purchase vapes at some stores.”
The GCH spokesperson said surveillance of some stores had identified incidents of minors being able to purchase vapes.
“In Queensland, it is illegal to sell a vape to a minor, whether it contains nicotine or not,” they said.
“In 2024, alleged breaches of Queensland smoking laws increased by 85 per cent on the Gold
Coast, with authorised officers responding to more than 250 complaints.
“Dedicated environmental health officers continually undertake inspections, surveillance, and
enforcement action at local retail stores.”
From 1 January to 26 November 2024, GCPHU officers:
• Seized more than 1,099,970 illicit cigarettes, 241 kilograms of loose tobacco and 15,200
vapes.
• Responded to 250 reports of alleged breaches to Queensland smoking laws.
• Carried out 466 inspections and surveillance activities.
• Undertook 495 enforcement actions, including written warnings, improvement notices, on-
the-spot fines, seizures, and legal proceedings.
In addition to the seizures, more than 21,000 vapes and 800 kilograms of loose-leaf illicit tobacco from 2023 were also destroyed.
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