30 arrests over two days in joint county lines crackdown
Merseyside Police officers were sent to North Yorkshire as part of Project Medusa
Merseyside Police officers have spent time in North Yorkshire catching gangs who are forcing vulnerable people to sell drugs.
32 people were arrested across two days in York and Selby last week as part of Project Medusa - which is a Merseyside Police initiative to disrupt county lines networks.
A large quantity of Class A and B drugs were seized along with vehicles and weapons.
Three of the 32 arrested were wanted on warrant.
Warrants were executed at a number of addresses and more patrols took place to intercept drug deals on the streets.
A specialist strike team also used Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology to stop vehicles linked to drugs.
The York Rescue Boat was also in action to patrol the River Ouse.
More than 1,100 drug dealing lines have been closed since 2019, with more than 2,400 people arrested for various offences including drug supply and money laundering.
1,250 children and vulnerable adults have been referred to safeguarding services.
Inspector Stephen Morris from Merseyside Police said:
"Project Medusa, funded by the Home Office, is the Merseyside-led initiative to tackle county lines drug dealing and the criminal exploitation of young people and vulnerable adults.
"We regularly deploy to other force areas to target county lines drug dealing, and this operation with North Yorkshire shows the results that can be achieved when working jointly to target those involved in this type of criminality.
"You will be caught and be put before the courts"
"The arrests and seizures made during this operation should act as a stark warning to county lines offenders – you will be caught and be put before the courts. We are working harder than ever to crackdown on county lines, which brings misery to communities in the form of drug dealing, violence but also the exploitation of young, often vulnerable children and adults who are coerced and manipulated in to dealing drugs for organised crime gangs.
"We are committed to working across borders to relentlessly pursue those involved in the supply of drugs and criminal exploitation. My message to those involved in county lines is clear – we have a zero-tolerance approach to serious organised crime, and we are relentless in our pursuit of those involved."
Any young person worried about being involved in county lines, or who knows someone who is, can contact www.fearless.org or Childline on 0800 1111.