[ad_1]
Image copyright
Council of National Police Chiefs
Police said all 43 regional forces in England and Wales were involved in the raids.
More than 1,000 people have been arrested and an estimated £ 1.2 million worth of drugs seized in a police crackdown on so-called ‘county line’ gangs.
Young and vulnerable people are used as couriers to transport drugs and cash between smaller cities and towns.
Police said last week’s raids, involving all 43 regional forces in England and Wales, had been the most successful of their kind.
Nearly 200 guns and £ 526,000 in cash were also seized.
During a week-long operation, the police forces also closed about 10% of the telephone lines (102) that were used for drug trafficking.
County lines is the term used to describe criminal gangs that transport illegal drugs from large cities to more rural places and sell them through special telephone lines.
It is a “business model” that now dominates drug trafficking, according to the BBC’s home affairs correspondent Tom Symonds.
Researchers said that restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic and a better understanding of mobile phone data had helped them target drug traffickers operating the lines.
Image copyright
Council of National Police Chiefs
Class A drugs, £ 526,000 in cash and nearly 200 guns seized
The operation resulted in:
- 1,041 arrests
- The discovery of approximately £ 876,000 in cocaine, £ 87,000 in crack and £ 234,000 in heroin
- Seizure of £ 526,000 in cash
- Confiscation of 196 weapons, including 130 knives, 18 firearms, 5 samurai swords and 10 fists
- 102 “supply line” devices, linked to phone numbers used to purchase drugs, were shut down
- The police contacted 1,551 vulnerable people for safeguarding purposes
- 69 referrals to the National Referral Mechanism as potential victims of human trafficking / modern slavery
- Visits to 861 deceived homes: a practice in which drug gangs seize the homes of vulnerable people to sell drugs
The key to county line trading is mobile phone numbers that are advertised in smaller towns but controlled by gang leaders in cities like London, Birmingham and Liverpool.
Gangs send mass text messages to customers informing them of what is on offer, with cocaine and heroin being the most common drugs for sale.
The gangs then have to transport the drugs to the areas where they are sold, often using young or vulnerable people who are lured or threatened to get involved.
The phones in use are typically pay-per-use, but police are obtaining communications data from network providers and analyzing calls and text messages sent and received to determine who controls the line.
The evidence is so strong that defendants often plead guilty without going to trial, police said.
Media playback is not supported by your device
Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Graham McNulty, head of the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) for county lines, said: “Now we know what a county lines phone looks like.”
Interior Minister Priti Patel said the results of the operation were “enormously impressive” and addressing the borders between counties was a “priority” for the government.
She said she had invested £ 25 million in “crucial work”.
Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter Y Instagram? You can also submit story ideas to [email protected]
[ad_2]
