A VAPE shop has been forced to close after it was allegedly caught selling illegal vapes to children.

The doors to Red Power, in Minster Street, must remain shut for three months after Salisbury Magistrates' Court upheld allegations of "criminal activity" brought forward by Wiltshire Council on Monday, August 12.

A 48-hour notice of closure was served to the premises on Saturday, August 10, and business owner Niaz Ali disputed it despite being in Iraq since August 2023, two months before the shop opened.

Ali did not appear in court to represent himself and instead sent an email on Tuesday, August 6, in which he said he is "certainly not guilty of selling any illegal counterfeit substances".

Red Power was raided by Trading Standards on November 10 and more than 1,000 illicit vapes were seized.

Red Power.Red Power. (Image: Newsquest)

The prosecution said that during this raid a sniffer dog found the illegal products behind electronic trap doors in the shop.

This came shortly after a 15-year-old successfully bought an illegal vape on behalf of Wiltshire Council following complaints from the public.

The prosecution told the court: "The vapes are illicit vapes and the cigarettes are illicit. We have not tested them, we don't know if they contain anything harmful or not."

The council asked manager Burnham Ali during the raid whether they could destroy the products without having to obtain a court order but Mr Ali refused, the prosecution alleged.

These illegal vapes were seized from Red Power by Trading Standards.These illegal vapes were seized from Red Power by Trading Standards. (Image: Wiltshire Council)

"We say things have not got gotten better but probably worse," the prosecution said.

"We are a public health service and our duty is to protect the public. These children are at risk by buying these vapes. We see crowds of children outside passing these vapes around."

Niaz Ali told the court he had been in Iraq caring for his father who was at the "end of his life cycle" but that he'd be back in the UK on September 6.

He explained how he relies on Red Power's income to support his family and pay his father's medical bills.

Chair magistrate Timothy Foster approved the application for a closure order which means Red Power will be shut until November.

A separate case of a Red Power shopworker allegedly selling a Lost Mary vape to a child on January 30 was adjourned until September 23.