County lines crackdown sees more than 60 people arrested and drugs seized

• WATCH: The moment officers tackle two suspected dealers in Hastings. Both were arrested on suspicion of supplying Class A drugs and are currently on bail. Credit: Sussex Police

Police forces in the South have joined national efforts to tackle County Lines operations.

30 arrests were made in one week by Sussex Police, who also seized drugs valued at £125,000.

In Hampshire, 31 people were arrested and officers seized over £78,000 worth of drugs. This includes over £1,000 of heroin, £47,120 of crack cocaine and £24,800 of powder cocaine.

Both forces supported the National County Lines Intensification Week, which began on Monday, March 7.

It focused on disrupting the activities of those involved in County Lines by safeguarding and protecting vulnerable people, pursuing offenders and reducing the number of lines.

During the week, officers in Gosport carried out a warrant at at a flat in Warders Court, Chilworth Grove and carried out regular patrols across the borough.

They were made up of a mix of high visibility and plain clothes patrols, as well as marked and unmarked vehicle patrols.

When officers stopped and searched a man in a local hotspot, Brian Mitchell, 46, was arrested and charged with heroin possession.

He will appear at Portsmouth Magistrates' Court on Thursday, March 31.

Acting Inspector Alison Zachs, said: "Drugs supply makes lives of local residents an absolute misery."

"Not only does it bring people from outside of the area to commit crime, but it also attracts other types of crime to the area as well as anti-social behaviour which has a negative impact on the local community."

"For these intensification weeks, we use a lot of our resources to focus on drugs supply in the local area."

"I don't want people to think that we don't do this sort of activity outside of weeks of action - we do. It's the case that with weeks of intensification we can pull lots of resources in and focus on it, however we do also throughout the year still concentrate on this type of behaviour."

"We can only do this work with the help of the public. We want to make a real plea to members of the public to please keep providing information about drugs supply to us."

What is County lines drug dealing?

• Criminal gangs set up a drug dealing operation in a place outside their usual operating area

• Deals take place away from larger cities such as London and Liverpool, and are carried out in smaller towns

• County Lines drugs suppliers are often involved in "cuckooing" - when drug gangs take over the home of a vulnerable person through violence and intimidation, using it as their base for selling/manufacturing drugs.

In Sussex, officers seized drugs valued at £125,000, along with £20,000 cash and 50 computers and phones in the week of March 7 to 14.

In Brighton & Hove officers made arrests every day.

Police executed four warrants and made 30 arrests for suspected Class A drug dealing and money laundering.

They also made checks on vulnerable people, and identified 38 people who were vulnerable to "cuckooing" by predatory drug dealers.

Officers also held awareness sessions at schools, and told taxi drivers and hotels how to spot signs of victim exploitation.

Detective Chief Inspector Will Rolls said; "County Line drug dealing continues to be a threat with currently 42 county lines active across Sussex."

"The force's primary concern remains the exploitation and trafficking of vulnerable adults and children and we continue to put dealers under increasing pressure."

"The number of 'deal lines', the dedicated mobile phone line to take orders from drug users, in operation in Sussex at any one time, often overlaps with adjacent force areas and fluctuates on a regular basis."

He added: "These excellent results are just a snapshot of our relentless seven-day-a-week work, even during recent lockdowns, which continue every day to disrupt dealers who try to deal dangerous drugs across our communities and we target those who use children to sell drugs or those who buy drugs from children."

"We investigate and prosecute, working relentlessly and targeting those who would bring harm to local people, including often the most vulnerable."

"Local crime is often a direct result of major drug distribution via county lines and by working together with partners to shed a light on this often hidden crime. We are sending a clear message to drug dealers that they cannot expect to go undetected in Sussex."

The areas in Sussex most affected by the drug trade from London are the larger coastal towns, with established drugs markets that can be exploited locally, including Hastings, Eastbourne, Worthing, Bognor, and Brighton, but also towns such as Crawley.

Police encourage communities to spot the signs that someone might be involved in drugs supply, and to report any suspicious activity.

Things to look out for include people always going missing from school or their home, or if they suddenly have lots of money/lots of new clothes/new mobile phones.

Signs of "cuckooing" include an increase in people coming and going from the address, and more cars or bikes outside.