Co-op’s ‘Del Boy car boot sale’ of drugs worth thousands
THE Co-op sold many thousands of pounds worth of medicines at a ‘car boot sale’ in scenes reminiscent of ‘Del Boy Trotter’, an employment tribunal has heard.
The retail giant held the sale in a car park at its distribution centre in Stoke-on-Trent after telling its 750 pharmacy branches to return goods totalling £1.7 million that were unsold or close to expiry date.
Prescription-only drugs turned up later on a stall in a street market.
The events were exposed at an employment tribunal into the sacking of a manager who alerted his bosses to the sale.
Stuart Baddeley, a compliance officer, went to the sale in July 2010, and removed prescription-only drugs because he feared it would be illegal to sell them.
He was later sacked by the Co-op after medicines were seen months later at a market in Winsford, Cheshire. The Co-op claimed he sold them to a trader and he was arrested on suspicion of the theft.
He was later cleared by police. The tribunal in Stokeon-Trent ruled there was no evidence against him.
The tribunal said: ‘This case had an eerie similarity to the scenarios played out in the escapades of Arthur Daley and Del Boy Trotter,’ referring to characters in Minder and Only Fools And Horses.
The tribunal found he had been ‘stitched up’ by bosses angered that he had raised a series of concerns, including that the car park sale was illegal. It ruled that Mr Baddeley, 59, should have been protected by ‘whistleblower’ laws after he raised previous concerns about the Co-op’s operations in China. He now stands to win six-figure damages.
Under the Medicines Act 1968, over-the-counter and prescription-only medicines cannot be sold at unrestricted open-air markets. Those convicted face up to two years in prison or unlimited fines.
Paul Grant, a lawyer representing Mr Baddeley, said: ‘The Co-op seems more interested in making money than public safety.’
The Co-op said: ‘We are extremely disappointed and surprised at the outcome of the tribunal and we are taking legal advice on our options, including whether to appeal.’