A shop has been ordered to pay more than £10,000 for selling a knife to two teenagers during an undercover operation.
Pound Island, a hardware and convenience store on Vivian Avenue in Hendon, sold the kitchen knife to two 15-year-old police cadets without asking for ID or carrying out an age check during a test purchase in December 2025.
The store manager, Segu Razeen, pleaded guilty at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on August 14.
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Cllr Barry Rawlings, leader of Barnet Council, said: "This prosecution sends a clear message, that we will not hesitate to act swiftly and firmly against any business found to be breaking the law and compromising the safety of our residents.
"Knife crime devastates families and communities, which is why it is so important we do everything we can to stop young people getting hold of knives in the first place. This is another good result for our Trading Standards team and their long-running partnership with local police cadets."
The business was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay £1,696.22 in costs to the council, along with a £2,000 victim surcharge. Mr Razeen was also fined £320 and ordered to pay a £128 victim surcharge. The total penalties came to £10,144.
The operation was part of Operation Sceptre, a joint effort between Barnet Council’s trading standards team and the Metropolitan Police. The scheme uses police cadets in undercover test purchases to tackle knife crime.
At the time of the sale, the shop had no age-verification processes in place, including Challenge 25, staff training records, refusal log, till prompts or appropriate signage.
A director told the court that the business had since introduced new measures, including stopping the sale of certain bladed items, to prevent future offences.
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