FAKE vodka seized in Bolton contained an industrial alcohol sometimes used in petrol, forensic tests have revealed.

Undercover officers seized 20 one-tonne industrial containers of the liquid along with 60,000 packets of fake Superking cigarettes in a swoop at a bottling factory on the Halliwell Industrial Estate.

It was initially believed the liquid contained pure alcohol, or ethanol.

But the tests found that he counterfeit spirit was a mixture of alcohol and butanol, a form of industrial alcohol sometimes used in petrol and methylated spirits.

At least 1,500 bottles of the fake vodka with a counterfeit Protocol vodka label have already hit the streets in Bolton and have not yet been recovered.

Richard Lindley, head of Bolton Trading Standards, said: "We are talking about something that has been made in a business unit, with no hygiene facilities, made from products meant for industrial use, not for food or drink manufacture."

He said he believed the counterfeiters had obtained undistilled alcohol and tried to distil it themselves to get rid of the butanol.

"It's obvious they have not got rid of it all," he said.

"We are trying to find out where the bottles that were being used were delivered from, who ordered them and who bought them."

During the raid on Thursday, March 9, officers discovered pallets of fake vodka apparently ready for distribution.

The joint raid was carried out by three trading standards officers, four police officers and 12 customs officers.

Two men brothers aged 48 and 43 were arrested at the bottling plant which is in a warehouse unit at the industrial estate.

The brothers were arrested under the Trade Descriptions and Trademark Act. They have been bailed until May 8.

Bolton Trading Standards have renewed their warning to the public not to drink or buy the vodka.

Earlier this month, a spokesman for Asda in Astley Bridge, which sells genuine Protocol vodka, said it was "absolutely disgraceful" that the fake vodka and cigarettes were being sold in Bolton and that it was damaging to legitimate business.

Anyone who knows of any suspicious activities that may be linked to tobacco or alcohol should call the HM Revenue and Customs 24-hour hotline 0800 59 5000.