Unlicensed Bolton offer blocked due to illegal activities

A Bolton licensee who lost his alcohol license is to be without it after an application for reinstatement failed.

California Wines has lost its alcohol license for illegal activities, including the sale of illicit tobacco from its Wigan Road site.

Trading Standards said there was a sophisticated system to take illicit tobacco from the first floor to the ground floor, involving eight different buttons for eight different brands of cigarettes and a chute.

(Image: Bolton Council)

They seized more than 8,000 cigarettes and around two and a half kilos of tobacco, some of which was thrown onto the roof in black bin bags, while they were in attendance last autumn.

In the spring of this year, a new owner, Pulla Ahmed, applied for a liquor license. The old owner, Masoud Salimi, is no longer involved in the business.

Mr Ahmed appeared at town hall this week, where a panel heard he also had a history of illegal activity while involved in other businesses.

(Image: Bolton Council)

Andrew Bolan, head of regulatory services, said: “He is not fit to hold a licence. If he is allowed to hold a licence, I have no doubt we will be back before a committee in a few months to review it.”

A report said Mr Ahmed was the licensee of M&M Mini Market in Halliwell Road, Bolton, from 2018 to 2020 until a criminal conviction for selling illicit tobacco.

The report says Mr Ahmed is the licensee of Top Nosh Grocery & Wine on Scholefield Lane, Wigan, where Wigan Council is also investigating the sale of illicit tobacco.

(Image: Bolton Council)

The report said: “It appears that Pulla Ahmed continues to engage in illegal activities as evidenced by the seizure of illicit tobacco from Top Nosh Grocery & Wine by Trading Standards in 2022.”

Mr Ahmed told the committee his criminal conviction was not relevant to the application as it was several years ago.

After consideration by Councilors David Chadwick, David Grant and Andrea Taylor-Burke, the application was refused.

This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email [email protected] or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.