Police halted test purchase operations at a Bradford shop because they feared for the safety of their teenage volunteers, councillors were told.

Members of the Bradford Licensing Panel yesterday revoked a premises licence for Girlington Mini Market in Girlington Road after hearing staff had allowed three underage sales of alcohol in five months.

West Yorkshire Trading Standards carried out the first test purchase in June, using a 15-year-old volunteer, after receiving a complaint regarding sales of cigarettes and alcohol to children under 18. Police then led two test purchase operations at the shop using undercover officers and four volunteers aged between 14 and 16.

PC Su Dawson, a licensing officer, told the panel staff became aggressive when she tried to discuss the purchases with them. When she left the shop after the first test purchase operation, officers were followed, which they believed was an attempt to locate the test purchase volunteers, the panel was told.

PC Dawson said in a meeting with her managers after the second investigation, it was decided no more test purchases should be carried out.

She said: “The safety of those test purchasers is paramount and I can’t put them in that position again.”

Councillors also heard the shop had breached its licence by failing to operate a CCTV system.

Councillor Imran Hussain, who represented the shop’s owners, including designated premises supervisor Waseem Nazir, said they were adamant the test purchasers looked older than 18, but realised they should have asked for ID.

He said: “They have never wilfully sold to people who are under 18 years old. They realise they could have had better measures in place.”

Coun Hussain said the CCTV system had been temporarily disconnected while the shop was refurbished.

A refusals book had been in operation since October and staff were now asking customers who looked under 25 for identification, he said.

  • Read the full story in Thursday's T&A