Charnwood houses raided in operation to target 'county lines' gangs

Leicestershire Police have carried out 33 warrants, arrested 37 people and safeguarded 17 children and 10 adults across the county.

The operation was part of a national County Lines Intensification Week (CLIW) (Monday 17 May to Sunday 23 May) which saw police forces up and down the country working with a range of partners to make arrests and safeguard the vulnerable.

County lines gangs export drugs into other areas of the country, often small towns, using dedicated mobile phone lines. They also exploit children and vulnerable adults to move and store drugs and money, sometimes using coercion, intimidation and violence.

Warrants were executed throughout the week in hotspot areas such as Charnwood and North West Leicestershire, as well as Leicester.

As well as arresting 37 people, officers seized suspected class A and B heroin, crack cocaine, cannabis, a large quantity of cash, a Rolex watch, 29 phones, three laptops, numerous sets of scales, blank firing firearms and ammunition, a BB gun and a stolen car. 

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Sinski from the Force Intelligence Bureau said: “It has been an incredibly successful week not just in terms of arrests and charges but also in the way we have worked with so many partners from community safety partnerships to education and social services, as well as drug intervention organisations such as Turning Point, to protect vulnerable people who are being exploited.  Drugs have a very negative affect on people’s lives and blight communities by bringing crime and anti-social behaviour to their doorstep. 

“There is no doubt in my mind that our enforcement action will have significantly disrupted the supply of drugs into our county towns but we are not complacent and will continue to focus on this priority area with more warrants already planned.”