A shop was stripped of its drinks licence for serving alcohol to children and stocking illegal booze.

Pharaoh Mini Market in Hove was found with a catalogue of problems when police, Trading Standards and firefighters visited this year.

Before a panel of councillors even sat to decide whether to take the licence away, the fire service had closed the shop for a month, branding it a “risk to life”.

Supervisor Magdi Elyas admitted sleeping in a storeroom and drinking in the Portland Road store.

Police found the shop littered with empty spirits bottles and cigarette butts.

Trading standards seized 128 bottles of whisky, gin and vodka they believed could be smuggled or counterfeit.

Police said staff were not trained, CCTV was left unplugged, there were no security arrangements and no record of incidents where underage customers had been refused drink.

Fire exits were blocked, fire extinguishers were empty and the kitchen was a health hazard.

A Brighton and Hove City Council licensing panel was told: “On the information available to Sussex Police, it would appear that the premises are being used for the carrying on of two types of criminal activity: the sale of alcohol to children and the sale of counterfeit alcohol.”

East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said the lives of people living on the floor above were in jeopardy because of the state the shop was in, and closed it down from January 20 until they were happy improvements had been made, on February 15.

Last Friday the shop finally came before the licensing panel, which revoked its drinks licence.

Tim Nichols, head of licensing at Brighton and Hove City Council, said in a statement: “It is imperative that licence holders appreciate the obligations of their licence and ensure that their business operates to the within the conditions stated and indeed within the law.

“These premises demonstrated the holder’s complete disregard of the requirements and we could not allow him to continue to sell alcohol. I’m delighted that the panel has agreed and revoked his licence.”

The Argus was unable to contact Mr Elyas yesterday.