More than 25 arrests made as county lines drug supply targeted

We have made more than 25 arrests and seized more than two kilograms of class A and B drugs as part of a national week-long campaign working with partners to disrupt county lines drug activity.

A total of 28 people were arrested in Staffordshire as part of County Lines Intensification Week which ran from Monday 27 February to Sunday 5 March.

The operation saw local officers and detectives proactively target individuals and locations to disrupt drugs supply across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, as well as identifying and protecting vulnerable victims.

During the week whilst responding to intelligence and community concerns, a total of £9,100 in cash and 175 cannabis plants were seized, along with over two kilograms of class A and B drugs.

A total of 20 vulnerable people were also safeguarded after officers visited 46 addresses of potential victims of cuckooing.

Cuckooing is when criminals, often associated with organised drug gangs, target vulnerable members of the community and take over their home. They will then exploit the person who lives there and use the property for criminality including for the storage or trafficking of drugs. It can also be used as an enforced base for another vulnerable person who will often be exploited to move, carry and sell the drugs.

The criminal groups often target children, young adults or vulnerable people who may be coerced through grooming, threats or violence.

As a result of our work, we were able to bring to an end three county drug lines as well as seize a large number of dangerous weapons and illegal knives.

In addition to our operational efforts, officers also delivered more than 170 county line awareness sessions in a number of schools across the county and undertook leaflet drops and online engagement sessions to help our communities spot the signs of exploitation and enable the police to signpost those at-risk to the relevant support groups.

Detective Superintendent Nicki Addison, from the Major and Organised Crime department at Staffordshire Police, said: “Although we proactively target county lines criminality throughout the year, this intensification week gave us the opportunity to work as team across the force and with partners to target those causing harm in our communities. This helped us to identify those causing harm, bring people to justice whilst also stopping three major drug lines operating in Staffordshire.

“Going forwards, with our partners we are committed to tackling this criminality through targeting the crime groups responsible, ensuring that we continue to protect our most vulnerable and make Staffordshire a safe place for our communities.”

To find out more about what we’re doing to tackle county lines, visit: County lines | Staffordshire Police.

To report suspicious activity or criminality in your area, visit: Your area | Staffordshire Police.