A MAN found with a £16,000 haul of illegal tobacco products at his home has been sentenced to 100 hours of unpaid work.

Stephen Fossey, 44, of Foxhill Drive, Whitewell Bottom, had more than 200 packets of Jin Ling cigarettes among the stash.

The cigarettes, which would sell at about half the price of genuine ones, were said to be produced in Eastern Europe, especially for the black market, and there were ‘absolutely no controls’ over what went into making them, or the levels of harmful substances they might contain.

The defendant admitted two counts of failing to comply with requirements of regulations when supplying a tobacco product, on March 29, and one allegation of possessing goods with a false trade mark on May 30.

Fossey was also given a community order, and ordered to pay £750 costs when he was sentenced at Burnley Magistrates’ Court.