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13
Nov
Ripon mayor calls for investigation after shop accused of selling vape to schoolgirl
The mayor of Ripon has accused a Ripon shop of selling a vape to an underage girl.
Councillor Andrew Williams said he was approached in the market place a fortnight ago by a parent “who was so upset and distressed that they were actually visibly shaking”.
Speaking at a Ripon City Council meeting on Monday (November 9), Cllr Williams said the parent told him their teenage daughter had bought the item from Vapour Worx on North Street wearing their school uniform.
He said the parent made “discreet enquiries” by visiting all the local shops and discovered Vapour Worx was the only one that stocked the item.
The shop is now known as Vape Lounge.
Cllr Williams, who leads the Independent Putting Ripon Before Party Politics group, said he had already raised the matter with the police and proposed the council also bring the matter to the attention of North Yorkshire Council’s trading standards department.
The Stray Ferret called the shop and spoke to a man called Abdul, who denied selling any vapes to underage customers. He said he always asked to see a passport or driving licence for identity and a sign on the door says it does not serve children.
“I never sell to anyone who looks underage," he said.
Abdul said the father of a girl did visit the shop a few weeks ago to check if he had sold her a vape but the shop did not sell the item in question.
He added he did not own the business and gave us the number of another man, who has not answered our calls.
Call for action over historic shop window
Councillors also agreed to write to North Yorkshire Council planning enforcement urging it to “take urgent action” against the removal of a historic window pane at Vape Lounge.
Cllr Williams said the window formed part of the building’s listed status.
How the shops used to look.
How the shops look now.
It and neighbouring Flower Design, which has maintained the historic window, form part of the same building.
Cllr Williams said the flower shop window was “beautifully maintained” but described the Vape Lounge window as “horrid and garish”.
He added:
It seems that they have no respect for planning law and it would appear from what I was told by a member of the public no respect for the law in general in terms of the sale of vapes to minors, which I find utterly disgusting as the parent of a teenage daughter myself.
When we called the shop. Abdul said the window was a matter for the owner to comment on.
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