Police in Suffolk have arrested over 150 people in connection with the supply of class A drugs across the county since the start of 2018.

 

As well as the arrests over £18,000 and over 2,800 wraps of class A drugs, such as heroin and cocaine have also been seized by officers across the county with 45 warrants also carried out.

 

Under the banner of Velocity the force last year brought the three area operations under the one ‘umbrella’ to ensure an increase co-ordination of enforcement activity across the three areas.

 

Between January and end of July, a total of 55 arrests were made in the Ipswich area for class A drug offences with 33 arrests made for being concerned in the supply of class A drugs, while another 17 were made for possession with intent to supply class A drugs.

 

Among the seizures conducted over the past few months a significant amount of knives and other weapons including knuckledusters, lock knives and a cosh were also recovered across the county. In one raid in the east of the county approximately 170g of cocaine with a street value of £26,000 and £5,000 in cash was recovered.

 

County Policing Commander Chief Supt Tonya Antonis said: “These arrests, disruption and seizures are all about us responding to offences linked to illegal drugs activity in the county. 

“We want to make Suffolk a hostile environment for those who think they can come into our county and deal drugs, and anyone caught breaking the law will be dealt with robustly.”

“These figures clearly demonstrate that our officers and staff are working hard to make an impact. However, we can’t merely ‘arrest our way out’ of the situation – more long term work is continuing with our partners to develop our response further, focusing on prevention and vulnerability.

“Policing alone will not solve the issue of drug addiction and we need to ensure everyone is playing their part to protect the community from drugs. 

 

“The enforcement that the police carry out is only one tactical option that deals with the immediate issues.

 

“We are determined that there will be no place to hide for those who bring harm to our region by exploiting people and pedalling dangerous, illegal substances”

 

Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore said: “The drug issue is the biggest threat facing Suffolk at the moment, without question.”

“I completely support the Constabulary’s stance in responding to offences linked to the illegal drugs trade, which I find totally evil and despicable.

“However this problem is not going to be solved by police activity and enforcement alone – we must all take responsibility.  I will do all I can to work with the Chief Constable and other public sectors leaders, public health teams, and education leaders to prioritise the problem in order to crackdown on further crime and prevent more youngsters becoming embroiled. This can only be successful if we take a collaborative approach – which includes pooling our financial resources.

He added, “The Constabulary is to be congratulated for their approach to this complex problem. The impact of their commitment over the past seven months is paying dividends and sending out a very clear message that anyone caught with illegal drugs in Suffolk will face the full force of the law.”

Information can help the police remove drugs and violence from communities. If you know of suspicious activity taking place in your locality please let us know using the 101 number and  police will respond, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.