County drugs & weapons operation sees 1029 arrests

Officers have been running a targeted crackdown on major and organised crime since May 2023

More than 1,000 arrests for drugs and weapon-related offences have been made during a crackdown on major and organised crime in Staffordshire.

Called Operation Target, it has been running since May 2023, and has been focused on "high-harm" crimes, said Staffordshire Police.

Of the 1029 arrests up until up the end of April 2024, almost 700 were linked to drug offences, including being concerned in the supply of heroin, crack cocaine, MDMA or cannabis.

Across the county during that same time period, there were 334 arrests linked to weapons, the force said.

Properties have been raided and stop and searches carried out as part of the operation

Drugs worth tens of thousands of pounds had been taken out of circulation, vulnerable people had been protected and "numerous" convictions had been secured, said Staffordshire Police.

"A lot of what we do is intelligence-led and we work closely with our communities, listening to their concerns and acting on the information they give us," stated Det Supt Nicki Addison.

So-called "high-harm" crimes include county lines drugs supply, illegal firearms activity, modern slavery and cyber-crime.

Policing teams had had a "relentless year" identifying and detaining offenders, said the force's head of major and organised crime.

The successful work to take "harmful drugs, weapons and people off our streets" continued, the detective added.