Crackdown on drug dealing in night time economy

Chief Constable Russ Foster said police were cracking down on drug crime

A police operation cracking down on the dealing of Class A drugs was part of a move to “dismantle” the “empires” of organised crime groups, the chief constable has said.

Russ Foster said that Operation Nightjar, which had been designed to target drug dealing in or around licenced premises, had led to several arrests locally.

Launched in the latter half of 2023, the Isle of Man Constabulary worked with the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit to identify individuals “actively dealing” the drugs throughout the “night time economy.”

Mr Foster said initiative had aimed to seize the substances before they “hit the streets” on the island.

He said the force had entered the “enforcement phase” of the operation between 30 January and 8 February, leading to the arrests.

Mr Foster said some of the criminals in the “higher echelons” of organised crime groups had already been given “significant” prison sentences, which should be seen as a “deterrent”.

“We will not tolerate such criminality as a society here in the Isle of Man," he said.

Tackling organised criminality would remain one of the constabulary’s “top priorities” and the police would continue to make the island a “hostile environment for such criminality”, Mr Foster said.

“We will continue to proactively target criminals using the maritime port, airport, mail coming into the island, small boats and local drug dealers, particularly those exploiting children and vulnerable," he added.