War on drugs shatters silence on sleepy streets

Project Medusa saw 30 arrests made across York and Selby in just under 48 hours

County lines gangs are plaguing UK towns and cities by ferrying illegal goods in and out of communities, many supposedly quiet and rural. The BBC's Phil Bodmer reports from York and Selby where police arrested 30 people in under 48 hours.

As daylight breaks over North Yorkshire, a team of burly police officers clad in military-style stab vests walk silently along a ginnel in Selby town centre. One of them carries a small but solidly built battering ram they call "the big red key".

Seconds later, four powerful thuds shatter the morning quiet and there’s a snap of splitting wood as the mortice lock gives way.

The lead officer shouts “GO” as a half-dozen more rush through the door.

“POLICE, keep still, nobody move,” echoes down the passageway. Curtains twitch in the neighbouring properties.

The market town, with its impressive 900-year-old abbey, is a short distance from the border of three neighbouring police force areas - Humberside, South and West Yorkshire.

With multiple routes in and out, it's a target for organised criminal gangs bringing in drugs from bigger cities, such as Sheffield, Bradford, and Liverpool.

County lines gangs often target smaller rural communities in an effort to avoid detection

This morning, officers are targeting several addresses they suspect are involved in county lines drug networks.

"Intelligence we've received from various sources leads us to believe these people are dealing drugs," says Acting Sgt Phil Coles.

A mobile phone is seized and man is arrested for further questioning.

'Horrific scourge'

More than 100 police officers are taking part in Project Medusa - a joint operation between the North Yorkshire and Merseyside forces.

"Serious and organised crime has its tendrils all over the country, even in a county as safe as North Yorkshire," says Acting Chief Constable Elliot Foskett, of the North Yorkshire force.

"Our job is to disrupt that market and dismantle these organised crime groups and stop this horrific scourge of drugs in our county."

Drones, dogs, covert surveillance teams and an underwater search unit can all be deployed as part of the operation, backed up by marked police vehicles from both forces to form a visible deterrent, alongside the plain-clothes work unseen by the public.

We’re out with 25-year-old roads policing officer Jack Dodsworth when a call crackles through the radio channel. Our attention is immediately heightened.

Plain-clothes police from the Merseyside force have observed a man acting suspiciously by the banks of the River Ouse, not far from the town centre.

When challenged, the man runs off and officers suspect he has thrown what they believe to be a gun, or gun case, over a wall onto the riverbank.

PC Dodsworth blue-lights his high-powered BMW X5 to the scene, where the suspect, who has links to South Yorkshire, has been detained. It’s not long before the riverbank area is flooded with police rather than water.

Police search the banks of the River Ouse after a suspect tries to escape capture

“He’s come up the embankment and gone over the wall at which point the officers have lost sight of him," PC Dodsworth explains. "It could be he’s realised they could be police and he’s looked to discard whatever he’s got in his hand.”

Following an initial search by a dog, the underwater marine unit is called in and two firearms are recovered.

In York, another team make further arrests following a check on a house they suspect may be involved in the supply or use of drugs. One of the occupants is pepper-sprayed, as officers entering the house are concerned for their safety.

Two knives and a quantity of cannabis are recovered.

Drugs, weapons and vehicles were all seized by police as part of the two-day operation

The operation is being run from Fulford Road police station, where CCTV images are monitored. Incoming intelligence is filtered here and sent out to officers on the ground.

"We've identified a vehicle through ANPR [Automatic Number Plate Recognition] for a simple 'no insurance', we've done some digging around that vehicle and registered keeper," Sgt Paul Cording explains.

"That individual has got links to county lines drug dealing."

For Det Ch Insp Carol Kirk, who is in charge of the operation, the aim is to cause maximum disruption to serious and organised criminals.

She says gangs are coming into York and Selby "because they see us as a fairly affluent area and basically prey on the vulnerable members of our community".

"So, we want to make sure this is a hostile environment for them to work in."

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