Drugs seized in crackdown on county lines gangs

Police in Scotland made 20 arrests and seized drugs worth £65,000 during a UK-wide crackdown on county lines crime gangs.

The haul included an intercepted package of cocaine which led to the recovery of £40,000 of cannabis from a house in Dingwall.

The week-long UK offensive led to 1,100 arrests.

County line gangs are urban drug dealers who sell to customers in more rural areas via dedicated phone lines.

Police Scotland assistant chief constable Pat Campbell said the gangs brought misery to communities.

He added: "They groom and exploit the most vulnerable people in our communities including children and young people.

"People are intimidated, coerced, threatened and forced into storing or selling drugs."

Those involved in the county lines gangs have become notorious for exploiting children to work as couriers and forcing vulnerable people to let them use their homes to conceal or deal drugs, as portrayed in BBC drama Line of Duty.

Cuckooing

The operation, co-ordinated by the National Police Chiefs Council, saw officers engage with 29 vulnerable people and visit 64 addresses believed to be used for the purposes of so-called "cuckooing".

This involves drug dealers using both physical and emotional threats to establish a base for selling drugs in someone's home.

As well as heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine and cannabis officers recovered more than £20,000 in cash and weapons, including a Taser and two machetes.

Almost £500 of counterfeit cash was also seized.

During the week of activity a number of post offices in the Highlands were visited by the force's dog unit.

A package containing high-purity cocaine, with a street value of more than £25,000, was intercepted.

It triggered a property search in Dingwall that led to the recovery of cannabis worth about £40,000 and the arrest of a 32-year-old man.

From 17-23 May officers also executed warrants in Inverness, Aberdeen. Perth and recovered a stolen hire vehicle in Edinburgh.

Anyone with information about county lines gangs is asked to contact Police Scotland.