UP to 80 per cent of independent off-licences in Islington could be selling smuggled booze, according to figures released by trading standards officers.

They have been cracking down on alcohol sneaked into the country by organised criminal gangs in vast quantities from Europe since September. In that time of 81 unannounced spot checks officers found smuggled booze worth thousands of pounds in 66 off-licences. The total haul in­cluded 6,341 bottles of wine and 1,500 litres of spirits.

Dave Fordham, Islington’s head of trading standards, said that the problem in the borough was significant.

“It’s not just smuggled goods but also counterfeit goods, which can be dangerous,” he said. “Counterfeit vodka can cause deafness and blindness. There’s no way of telling if it’s counterfeit or not, so to buy from the back of a van is putting people at risk. 

“We are finding more wine at the moment but spirits are a concern. This is not just someone going to France and loading up from a supermarket. It is serious organised criminals. 

“Clearly, finding it in 66 shops out of 81 visits is a worrying statistic. They are more the independent shops – the big supermarkets are not involved.”

On Tuesday one of those retailers had its licence to sell alcohol revoked by the Town Hall licensing committee. When Trading Standards officers raided Canonbury Food and Wine in St Paul’s Road they found 227 bottles of wine, 20 litres of vodka and 12 litres of whisky.

Sergeant Robin Clark, the licensing officer for Islington Police, told the committee on Tuesday that there is a “strong link” between organised crime groups and smuggled booze.

“This type of crime is also supporting other types of crime such as the drug trade, people trafficking and even terrorism,” he added. 

Solicitor Colin Turner, speaking on behalf of the Canonbury Food and Wine licence holder, Salih Gunes, said that some of the stock had been brought from a cash and carry and others from the back of a van by Mr Gunes’s father who was looking after the shop. 

He was unable to provide receipts for any of the purchases but the owner had decided to move on and was transferring the licence.

“He acknowledges that he shouldn’t have done what he did, and he’s not going to do it again. He has learned his lesson,” said Mr Turner.