A week of coordinated activity has been hailed the most successful one yet, with more than 1,000 arrests and Class A drugs worth £1m seized.
In Surrey we contributed to the national picture with our activity resulting in:
- 27 arrests which are attributed to County Lines and Organised Crime Groups
- In excess of £10k worth of Crack Cocaine and Heroin seized plus unquantified amounts of cannabis
- Nearly £21k in cash seized
- Designer trainers and clothing seized with a value of around £25k
- 37 mobile phones and two weapons seized
Tackling county lines and related harm is a priority, not only for Surrey Police, but for law enforcements nationally. The impact of drugs networks in our communities can be devastating and leads to knock-on effects such as violence, exploitation, anti-social behaviour and an increase in thefts.
We know there are currently hundreds of county lines operating across the UK, and this operation makes best use of coordinated activity to identify perpetrators, reduce violence, take away the proceeds of crime and safeguard the vulnerable.
While these operations will have substantially disrupted numerous county lines, our work is ongoing and we are pursuing all available means of strengthening the national response.
We’re calling on the public to help us deal with it by being aware of the signs of potential drug dealing and report it if you spot:
– Lots of visitors, who don’t stay very long, arriving at all times of the day and night
– People waiting in cars outside particular properties exchanging small packets or cash
– Lots of visitors bringing items such as TVs or bikes but leaving empty handed
– Lone/vulnerable neighbours suddenly having groups of people living at their address
