Police take down crack cocaine phone line in Harrogate

A phone line being used by drug dealers to advertise crack cocaine and cocaine to people in Harrogate has been shut down.

North Yorkshire Police say they've used a court order to have the line disconnected, meaning dealers can no longer use it to sell.

It's believed the people behind the line, known as Danny, were operating in Leeds and Bradford.

Inspector Penny Taylor of North Yorkshire Police, said: “These orders are a helpful disruption tactic to interrupt the flow of drugs. Police regularly seize mobile phones from suspected drug dealers, but the numbers and associated contacts can be reactivated within hours.

"The orders allow us to take down the line and remove the phone number from circulation permanently, meaning it cannot ever be reactivated on another device, depriving the dealers of the key means to sell their drugs."

“Drug dealing and the associated exploitation of vulnerable people is a foremost priority for North Yorkshire Police and we will continue to target dealers who prey on the vulnerable and cause misery in our communities.”

It's come as part of an operation to break up drugs operations running in the town, with 18 people arrested since August 2020.

Earlier this year, police told Greatest Hits Radio it was becoming a never-ending battle, after two 13-year-old's were arrested.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.