A Glasgow company director has been banned from running businesses until 2034 after importing raw tobacco concealed inside furniture without the required approval from HM Revenue and
Customs (HMRC).
Border Force officers intercepted the shipment at the Port of Grangemouth in January 2022 after discovering raw tobacco hidden in vacuum-sealed tins disguised as furniture. The container was addressed to Unique Enterprise Ltd, a company operated by Fazle Masum.
Investigators found that the company did not hold the HMRC authorisation required to import or handle raw tobacco, a legal requirement introduced across the UK in 2017. Despite the seizure, Masum later applied to Border Force to have the tobacco returned.
Following an HMRC investigation, Unique Enterprise Ltd was fined £152,980. The company subsequently entered liquidation with debts of nearly £175,000, the vast majority of which related to the unpaid penalty.
Masum, 42, of Glen Loy Place in Glasgow, was disqualified from acting as a company director for eight years by Glasgow Sheriff Court on 8 June 2026. The disqualification took effect on 29 June, preventing him from forming, managing or promoting a company until 2034 without court permission.
The case highlights the UK's strict controls on the importation and handling of raw tobacco, which are designed to combat the illicit tobacco trade and ensure compliance with tax regulations.
Mike Smith, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:
“Fazle Masum chose to import raw tobacco without the required approval and went to deliberate lengths to hide what he was doing. That is not conduct we expect from company directors.
Director disqualification is one of the most important tools we have to protect the public. By securing this order, we are making sure Masum cannot put other companies, creditors or consumers at risk in the same way”.
Christina Brown, Head of Border Force North Region, said:
“Masum’s interception highlights Border Force’s vigilance against unlicensed tobacco and cigarette smuggling.
Through intelligence led multi-agency operations we are seizing hundreds of millions of illegal cigarettes, disrupting organised crime and protecting legitimate businesses.
Masum’s disqualification prevents him from managing, forming or promoting a company without the permission of the court”. Photo by .love.is.war., Wikimedia commons.
