A shop has been ordered to pay more than £4,000 after it sold a knife to a 14-year-old with potentially “terrible consequences”.

The teenager bought the knife for £2.49 at Value4Money in Stroud Green Road last October as part of a council sting operation.

Islington Council also seized 607 illegal tobacco products after visiting the Finsbury Park store that same month and the company’s other store in Blackstock Road in March 2023.

The shops’ owner, Homix Enterprise Ltd, was fined £1,000 for selling the craft knife to the 14-year-old after pleading guilty at Highbury Magistrates’ Court.

Imposing the fine, the presiding magistrate noted that there was a “significant problem in London with knife crime”.

He added that magistrates had been as lenient as the law allowed them to be, after the company cited ongoing financial difficulties.

The company was also fined £2,000 after pleading guilty to three offences concerning the sale of illegally packaged tobacco products.

The tobacco products seized by the council had been imported illegally and did not have health warnings on them. 

Islington Gazette: Illegal cigarettes were seized by the councilIllegal cigarettes were seized by the council (Image: Islington Council)

The council was awarded costs of £250 and the firm must also pay a victim surcharge of £800.

Islington Council said it takes knife crime very seriously and encouraged businesses to sign up to its ‘No Knife Shop’ scheme.

When part of the scheme, shops pledge not to sell knives unless it is a key part of their business.

Cllr John Woolf, Islington Council’s executive member for community safety, said: "Everyone in Islington deserves to feel safe, which is why we have zero tolerance for businesses that sell knives to under 18s.

“We all must do our bit to keep each other safe, like taking our ‘No Knife’ pledge or making use of our eight knife bins.

“And while most businesses behave responsibly, we will take robust action against those that break the law and put others in danger.

“This prosecution sends a clear message that knife crime has no place on our streets.

“Although knife crime in Islington has reduced since 2018 and serious youth violence has continued to decrease too, we know that just one instance is a tragedy.

“We know that selling knives to underage persons can have terrible consequences. It will not be tolerated. And we will act against those who break the law."