MORE than 300 bottles of counterfeit vodka have been seized during recent raids in the North-East.

Tests are being carried out on the fake alcohol to establish whether it may be harmful following operations at two properties in Consett, County Durham.

The bottles were seized during a crackdown by officers from Durham County Council’s Trading Standards team and Durham Constabulary.

Initial tests have shown that the alcohol content of the vodka is considerably lower, leading to concerns about the content of the bottles.

The seizure follows a recent crackdown by Trading Standards and the Police on a number of ‘dial-a-drink’ businesses, which were found to be selling counterfeit alcohol.

Joanne Waller, the council’s head of environment, health and consumer protection, said: “We cannot be confident that any counterfeit alcohol is safe to drink as we do not know how it was manufactured.

“Tests carried out elsewhere in the country have found alarming levels of potentially dangerous chemicals in these fake spirits, with fake vodka recently seized in Sheffield being found to contain an industrial solvent alcohol called isopropanol.

“We will continue to work with our partners to ensure these products are not available to consumers in County Durham. Where we do find it on sale, we will take appropriate action to remove it from the supply chain.”

Inspector Colin Dobson, of Durham Constabulary’s Alcohol Harm Reduction Unit, said: “As well as the harm this product could have on health, alcohol supplied on this scale is often linked to organised crime.

“We will continue to work with our partners to do everything in our power to disrupt organised crime groups responsible for the supply of these types of products.”