International crimelords are profiting from the sales of contraband cigarettes on the streets of Tayside.
A covert investigation led by The Courier has unearthed evidence of a thriving underground tobacco trade in shops, pubs and clubs across the region.
A team of undercover agents found that it was “very easy” to buy illegal and potentially deadly tobacco products from unscrupulous sellers throughout Dundee.
And the cash made from the deals can be traced back to global organised crime gangs involved in, amongst others, drugs, prostitution and human trafficking.
The latest probe follows hot on the heels of undercover operations in Perth and Fife which uncovered similarly shocking results.
During a trawl of Dundee, led by former Scotland Yard detective Will O’Reilly, investigators managed to get their hands on 30 illegal tobacco products in just a few hours.
Most contraband was bought from corner shops, but with little effort the team managed to trace seven men willing to sell cheap cigarettes and tobacco from pubs and social clubs.
They also successfully bought from the landlord of one pub and struck a deal with a seller at his home.
On Tuesday, The Courier launches the first of a two-part investigation into Scotland’s illegal tobacco trade and asks what is being down to stem the tide of contraband reaching our shores.