Arrests after raids to target County Lines drug dealing across West Yorkshire

Led regionally by the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Organised Crime Unit as part of national County Lines Intensification Week, officers across the Force’s five policing districts stepped up their work to tackle the issue with targeted enforcement and safeguarding activity.

The week, which is run nationally by the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre, sees close collaboration between police and partner agencies to target county lines offenders, safeguard victims and protect children and vulnerable adults.

The theme of this intensification week was reducing child exploitation, particularly child criminal exploitation, associated with county lines.

Over the week, officers safeguarded 31 people, including 25 young people aged under 18. They engaged with a further 20 under-18s and 12 adults through other activities.

A total of 56 people were arrested on suspicion of county lines related offending during the operation.

Officers recovered 905 grams and 213 wraps of crack cocaine and further amounts of the drug worth more than £11,000; 40 grams of heroin and further amounts of the drugs worth £1,000; and 412 grams of cocaine and further amounts of the drug worth £31,500. They also recovered 7,400 cannabis plants and more than 3kg of cannabis.

More than £200,000 in cash was also seized, along with 50 mobile phones, vehicles, designer clothing, and weapons.

County lines is a term used to describe gangs and organised criminal networks involved in exporting illegal drugs into one or more importing areas in the UK, using dedicated mobile phone lines or other forms of ‘deal line’. They are likely to exploit children and vulnerable adults to move and store the drugs and money, and they will often use coercion, intimidation, violence, including sexual violence, and weapons.

Intensification work during the week focused on the established ‘4P’s’ strategy which pursues offenders, protects vulnerable people, prevents individuals becoming involved in county lines and prepares communities to mitigate the impact of county lines, via greater resilience.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police’s dedicated county lines taskforce Operation Phoenix executed warrants at two addresses in Bradford to arrest suspects in liaison with colleagues in Derbyshire Constabulary and Greater Manchester Police.

They also carried out targeted operations supported by the force’s Proactive Intercept Team in Keighley and with patrol team colleagues in Rastrick, resulting in the arrests of three suspects for supply offences and the seizure of drugs.

Operation Phoenix officers were also working with partner agencies, including specialised support and rescue service Catch22, on engagement and diversion activities for young people at risk.

Across the force’s five policing districts, co-ordinated activity took place involving a range of specialist departments, including district Programme Precision teams, which target serious and organised crime, safeguarding units and neighbourhood policing teams.

In Leeds, activity included warrants and planned arrests targeting identified suspects linked to county lines and the exploitation of children; outreach work alongside youth services; and awareness sessions by schools liaison officers.

In Wakefield, preventative work included school liaison officers delivering sessions in schools to highlight the risks associated with county lines, and neighbourhood policing team visits to locations that have been flagged for county lines activity.

In Bradford, proactive operations targeted identified dealing lines and street dealers, while other work with housing agencies focused on known addresses.

In Kirklees, neighbourhood policing team officers carried out plain clothes operations in known ‘hotspots’ around Huddersfield and surrounding rural areas to gather information and target identified suspects. Workshops with partner agencies and community groups were held to highlight the warning signs of cuckooing – where dealers take over the home of a vulnerable person to operate from.

In Calderdale, officers from the district’s Children Vulnerable to Exploitation Team carried out disruption visits to flagged offenders, while further work included training with hotel staff and awareness visits to taxi companies.

Detective Superintendent Marie Bulmer, West Yorkshire Police’s Head of Serious and Organised Crime, said: “Criminal gangs involved in county lines drug dealing continue to present a real risk of serious harm to those they exploit, particularly young people, and it is only through the type of co-ordinated work we have seen across West Yorkshire during this latest intensification week that we will continue to disrupt and dismantle this abhorrent trade and reduce the harm it causes.

“We have made significant progress over the last few years through our increased focus and greater co-ordination alongside our partner agencies, but we can never be complacent and will always recognise the need to keep the pressure on those involved every day, every week, every year.

“We hope the successes highlighted from the intensification week, particularly around the young people who have been safeguarded, will help to reassure people in our communities about how seriously we are continuing to treat this issue, and illustrate our commitment to relentlessly pursuing those involved.”

* Further information on county lines and the warning signs to look for can be found on our website at County lines | West Yorkshire Police and on the independent charity Crimestoppers dedicated page Speak up to stop county lines and exploitation | Crimestoppers