North Yorkshire Police seize £100,000 and arrest 14 people during week of action targeting county lines drug dealing across Harrogate district

The activity was part of a national “week of intensification” led by the National Crime Agency that saw police forces across the country working to disrupt drug dealers and safeguard vulnerable people who are exploited by organised crime gangs.

Several teams from North Yorkshire Police were deployed to work on the week of action from 27 February to 5 March.

The force’s intelligence team were responsible for working within the community to identify suspects, vehicles and vulnerable people subjected to exploitation.

The operation expedite team is the force’s dedicated county lines team and they were out on the streets proactively stopping people and vehicles that were linked to the supply of drugs.

The Operational Support Unit also assisted with proactive patrols and the execution of warrants across the county.

Officers in Harrogate were supported by West Yorkshire Police in the execution of four warrants in Kirk Deighton and Leeds that were linked to county lines coming into the Harrogate area.

At one address in Leeds, officers recovered approximately £100,000 in cash.

As a result of the searches, three arrests were made.

A 19-year-old man was arrested for possessing with intent to supply a class a-drug, class b-drug and class c-drug.

A 26 -year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of a class-a drug.

A 41-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possessing a controlled class-b drug and handling criminal property.

All three were released under investigation.

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A 32-year-old attended a voluntarily interview and was issued a cannabis warning.

During the week of action, officers focused on protecting vulnerable people who are the victim of cuckooing.

The term “cuckooing” refers to the practice of drug dealers taking over the home of a vulnerable person and using it at a base to sell and store drugs.

They often use violence and intimidation to achieve this.

Victims of cuckooing are often drug users themselves, or people who are vulnerable due to a mental or physical disability, their age or lifestyle, such as sex workers and single mothers.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Simpson, who coordinated the week of activity in North Yorkshire, said: “County lines drug dealing is a major priority for North Yorkshire Police, so much so that we have teams who are focused full-time on disrupting drug dealing activity.

“Although last week’s activity is part of a national week of intensification, it is indicative of the activity going on across North Yorkshire all of the time.

“The fact that we have safeguarded 70 people in one week shows our commitment to protect vulnerable people who have been or are at risk of being exploited by dealers.

“I would urge anyone with information about drug dealing in their community to call us on 101, we treat every piece of information as important.”

Anyone who has any concerns about county lines can speak to their local police on 101 or call 999 in an emergency.

If you would rather stay anonymous, you can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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