Customs officers have calculated the value of fake alcohol seized during a two-day operation.

More than £72,000 worth of suspected smuggled and fake booze was seized.

Revenue and Customs joined forces with police and Trading Standards for the first time to raid 33 stores across Brighton and Hove on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Enforcement teams seized 2,950 bottles of spirits and wine and 2,270 litres of suspected illegal beer.

They also took away 50 kilos of shisha flavoured tobacco and 2,600 packets of cigarettes.

At one store, officers discovered a van in the act of delivering smuggled alcohol.

In another more than 1,000 bottles of counterfeit wine were found crammed into a small stockroom alongside numerous cases of illegal beer.

Suspected bottles of counterfeit Sambuca, Vodka and Jacob’s Creek wine were found in another shop.

A Customs spokeswoman described the operation as a “significant success” in the fight against alcohol smugglers.

No arrests have yet been made but the spokeswoman confirmed investigations were ongoing and said shopkeepers found to have been selling fake goods could have their licenses revoked.

A Trading Standards spokesman said: “Our work has resulted in many seizures and prosecutions in the last year and it’s something we’re keeping a careful eye on.”

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