Operation Scorpion 8 - Hard-line approach sees more arrests and cash, drugs and weapons seized across south west
More than 60 arrests were made across the south west and drugs worth more than £150,000 were seized in a week-long series of police raids it can now be revealed.
Huge quantities of crack cocaine, cannabis and heroin; weapons including a number of firearms, a Samurai sword, machete and knives, were also recovered in the latest phase of Operation Scorpion an initiative involving the South West’s five police forces.
Figures just released show that across the region there were:
- 64 arrests
- £152,173 worth of drugs seized
- £198,088 cash seized
- 29 weapons were seized
- 28 vulnerable people safeguarded
- As well as a quantity of clothing, motorbikes and high value cars were also seized
During the seven days of operations from June 10-16, police teams across the south west targeted gangs and addresses of suspected drugs dealers and suppliers; stepped-up patrols of known hotspots and used technology to disrupt so-called county-lines activities.
South West regional drugs intensification weeks like Operation Scorpion are a collaboration between the five police forces in the South West region – Dorset, Devon & Cornwall, Avon & Somerset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. The region’s five Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), the British Transport Police, South West Regional Organised Crime Unit and the independent charity Crimestoppers are also combining their resources to tackle drug supply in the region and make the South West a hostile environment for those who deal drugs and engage in anti-social drug taking activity.
Mark Callaghan, Assistant Chief Constable of Dorset Police, said: “First of all I would like to thank the public for the information they have provided, and continue to provide, about drug related activity in their areas. I cannot overemphasise how important this community intelligence is to the success of operations like Scorpion. It helps us to target our resources effectively and where they are most needed.”
“This was a large operation involving both uniformed and plain clothes officers across the region to disrupt drug activity and support local communities.”
“Dorset police officers worked intensively between 10th and 14th June. The week began with an intelligence-led operation targeting a county line operating in Bournemouth Town Centre area. It resulted in the arrest of three males found with the mobile phone used to conduct illegal drug deals and a large quantity of drugs. This was a fantastic piece of joint working between the Intelligence Directorate, Neighbourhood Policing teams, the Data Forensics Unit , Investigations and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit. The three males are on remand and that supply line has been shut down.
“We also conducted safeguarding visits at the homes of vulnerable adults and victims of cuckooing. Twenty stop searches were conducted and nine people were arrested (of which four were remanded and four charged at the time of writing), resulting in the seizure of seven knives, two axes, £5000 in cash, 17 mobile phones and a significant amount of heroin and cocaine.”
“As well as recovering profits from drug related crime and bringing criminals to justice, Operation Scorpion is about safeguarding those who have been pulled into its world and removing the source of disruption and misery from our communities, and I’m proud that our officers have achieved this again in Dorset and the wider south west.
Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner, David Sidwick said: “I would like to thank everyone involved in Operation Scorpion 8 – another set of really good results for Dorset and across the wider region. This intensified process of how we all work together to tackle drug related crime works – the results speak for themselves – putting in place an effective stop and search process, arrests being made, knives and offensive weapons confiscated, drug-money seized, significant amounts of illegal drugs seized and really importantly for me, mobile phones taken which disrupts further engagement.
“The mobile phones and the information stored in them are key to catching criminals further up the chain of supply and that’s what we all want to achieve, we all want to get to those at the top of the chain and stop organised crime groups from peddling their miserable trade in our county and across the south west.
“Operation Scorpion will keep on keeping on. It will be absolutely relentless in its pursuit of crime and will not stop until we make our county and the whole of the south west region #NoPlaceForDrugs”
Anyone with information about illegal drugs activity in Dorset should report it to Dorset Police online service online here www.dorset.police.uk/intelligence or by calling 101. Always call 999 in an emergency or if anyone is in immediate danger.
Your information will be treated in confidence, but of you prefer to report anonymously please do so through Crimestoppers. You can call 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year on 0800 555 111 or you can use the non-traceable online form here https://crimestoppers-uk.org/
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