Published: Tuesday, 3rd November, 2009 9:31am

Crackdown on sale of knives to minors continues

A typical knife set sold in the town.

ANOTHER victory has been chalked up in the war against knife crime in Slough after a shop owner was fined for selling a set of blades to a minor.

Slough Borough Council's trading standards team have been laying traps to catch borough based stores who continue to flout safety guidelines by flogging potentially dangerous weapons to under 18s with the latest test purchase exercise exposing one careless shopkeeper.

Baljinder Singh Hansra, owner of AB Superstore on the High Street, was slapped with a £450 fine at Maidenhead Magistrates Court after admitting that one of his staff had sold a seven piece knife set to a young person without asking for ID.

In addition to the latest bust trading standards officers carried out a town-wide sweep where two young volunteers visited 25 shops last week, however, no sales were made and many premises had stopped selling knives altogether.

Dean Cooke, trading standards officer, said: "We're committed to ensuring our town is kept safe by shop owners taking the responsibility of not selling age-related products to minors.

"However, it's a matter of concern that some traders have chosen to simply stop selling knives altogether. It's very important to note this is not the intention of trading standards. All we ask is that traders take responsibility for these products by asking young consumers to show proof of ID."

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