THE manager of a shop in Clydebank said he was made to feel like a criminal when Trading Standards officers raided his shop this week.

A van full of up to £15,000 worth off stock was hauled from Sparkles, which sells various homewares goods in Clyde Shopping Centre, when a team visited on Monday morning after a complaint by a consumer.

An investigation has been launched by West Dunbartonshire Council Trading Standards – but shop manager Farhan Ali doesn’t feel like he has done anything wrong.

Mr Ali told the Post: “They said stuff we were selling had no [safety directive] CE marks. They had CE marks but no importer address.

“We are not the importer. We bought from a wholesaler. A couple items were bought from Facebook – they said we cannot sell that.

“Whatever stock they took they never gave us any proof of what they were taking.”

He added that he was made to feel like a criminal.

Mr Ali said: “[The Trading Standards officer] made us feel like we were selling drugs in the shop. It’s my right to ask questions of her. I’m going to see my MP as well.”

Mr Ali also complained that the Trading Standards officer was “very rude” and questioned if it was because of his race.

He said: “She was very offensive towards staff. This was not the right thing for us – it’s a bad name for our business. They’re just coming to us to harm our business.

“These are just house decorations – I don’t think there’s anything to do with Trading Standards.”

Mr Ali said as well as some stock shelves being emptied by the raid, some items were broken.

He estimated the total value of items including lamps, mugs, lights and ornaments to be up to £15,000 at the shop which opened a year ago.

The shop remained open throughout the two-hour search.

A spokeswoman for West Dunbartonshire Council told the Post: “Following a consumer complaint, officers from West Dunbartonshire Council’s Trading Standards attended a business in Clyde Shopping Centre on 11 October, with assistance from colleagues from Police Scotland.

“The matter is the subject of an ongoing Trading Standards investigation.”

No further details were provided about the nature of the investigation.

Police Scotland also attended but there were no arrests or charges.

A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: “Officers were asked to assist another agency, however, on arrival everything was in order and assistance was no longer required.”