Four businesses who sold illegal make-up, some containing cancer causing chemicals, have been ordered to pay out over £12,000 between them.

An Enfield Council crackdown saw thousands of illegal cosmetics seized or removed from sale across the borough.

One shop, Shaba Hair and Cosmetics in Edmonton, was found to be selling hair dye containing the carcinogen O-Aminophenol.

The director of the South Mall shop, Mohammad Imran was fined £1,875 and ordered to pay £720 costs.

Three other shops have since been prosecuted at Tottenham Magistrates’ Court in recent weeks.

On August 25, Edwin Apau Frimpong , director of Afromart Mini Market in Hertford Road, was fined £2,945 and ordered to pay £250 costs.

Kannan Stores, of Fore Street, Edmonton, was also found guilty of selling the illegal beauty products, on September 11.

Its directors, Kanagasabapathy Mannivannan and Kanagasabapathy Mathisoody, were fined £2,025 and ordered to pay costs of £1,762.

Mohammed Ziarab, who owns Beautyqueens Cosmetics, also of Fore Street, was fined £2,450 and ordered to pay £600 costs.

The council said another unnamed business is being taken to court.

Cabinet member for environment, Cllr Daniel Anderson, said: “It is totally unethical for traders to make a profit selling dangerous products and I am delighted they have been hammered with big fines by the court.

“Enfield Council will never stop working to protect the public from hazardous goods and the individuals who think they can get away with selling them to unsuspecting members of the public." 

A clampdown across Enfield in May last year, Operation Trawl, saw Trading Standards officers searching 11 premises in the borough.

Shops were first told to remove the banned cosmetics from sale. They were then revisited and, if they had not taken the goods down, were prosecuted.