A COVENTRY shopkeeper has been fined for selling dangerous gun-shaped laser pointers and stocking out-of-date meat.
Mr Nazeer Kogyani, 39, of Stoney Mini Market on the Stoney Stanton Road was fined £500 and ordered to pay over £1,200 in costs by Coventry Magistrates Court last Wednesday (September 19).
Coventry City Council’s Trading Standards team visited the Stoney Mini Market in November last year.
It identified a number of keyrings on sale in the shape of toy guns that were not CE (European health, safety, and environmental protection standards) marked and didn’t have any details as to the manufacturer or importer.
These items contained laser pointers that were ‘worryingly strong’. As a result, officers seized the items in question.
The inspection also found a number of packs of beef sausages beyond their use-by date and removed them from sale.
Trading Standards later submitted the laser pointers for testing and the results showed it had the potential to cause an eye injury.
Public Health England, The Health Protection Agency and the World Health Organisation guidelines all specify lasers of such strength should not be available to the general public.
The court heard Mr Kogyani was unable to provide any receipts or identify where the laser pointers came from.
Trading Standards officers had previously verbally advised and issued a written warning to Mr Kogyani regarding stocking out-of-date food, and he had also previously accepted a simple caution for similar matters.
He was prosecuted for offences under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 and Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013.
Chair of the licensing and regulatory committee councillor Patricia Hetherton said: “Shoppers in Coventry have a right to be confident that the goods and food they buy are safe.
“Trading Standards have a critical role in protecting the public from dangers that are not immediately obvious to many consumers.
“A vast majority of businesses in Coventry trade fairly and safely, however in incidents where traders behave in a cavalier manner, and ignore our advice, we will take action through the courts to protect our community.”
If consumers have seen similar products on sale, or are concerned about shops selling food beyond its use by date, they can contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 04 05 06 to raise their concerns.
