A kiosk owner in Kato Paphos has paid a €3,100 in an out of court settlement after customs officers seized hundreds of illegal nicotine pouch products during a coordinated operation, police said on Wednesday.

The raid took place on July 13 and involved officials from the Customs Department, the Paphos anti-drug unit (Ykan), Paphos police and the pharmaceutical service.

Officers found 377 packs of nicotine pouches from various brands that had allegedly been imported and offered for sale without the required licences for the Cypriot market.

Authorities also discovered that the kiosk owner did not hold the necessary licence to trade or sell legal tobacco products.

The owner was arrested for customs offences committed in the act, while all nicotine pouches were confiscated.

The owner accepted an out of court settlement of €3,100 and agreed in writing to surrender the seized products, which will now be destroyed in accordance with the prescribed procedures, the customs department said.