Police disrupt organised crime networks in month-long crackdown
A month-long policing operation to target serious and organised crime resulted in more than 240 arrests and a number of criminal networks disrupted.
In a bid to crackdown down on offenders linked to organised crime, officers across the country gathered intelligence on individuals linked to a range of offences, including immigration, cannabis cultivation and possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.
These offenders are typically involved in poly-criminality – multiple crime types that touch different parts of society and can span various locations across and outside of the UK.
The operation, led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), took place throughout March and saw Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs) and police forces focusing on disrupting high-harm offenders involved in serious organised crime.
As part of the operation, police made 249 arrests and seized substantial quantities of drugs, cash, and assets believed to be linked to criminal networks. The operation also focused on gathering further intelligence to enable continued and relentless enforcement.
In total, officers seized and recovered around:
13,100 cannabis plants
307kg of non-plant cannabis
42.6kg of cocaine
£352,000 in cash
104 vehicles
Nick Bellingham, from the NPCC Serious Organised Crime portfolio, said: “This operation reflects the significant effort by police forces and ROCUs, who have worked to develop a detailed intelligence picture enabling us to target and disrupt organised criminals.
“Many of these offenders are engaged in organised crime, poly-criminality and exploit the law for their own gains.
“Alongside this activity, the operation has also assisted in continuing to build a broader intelligence picture around high‑harm offending.
“We remain committed to catching those who are happy to exploit and cause harm to others and will continue to do all we can to protect our communities from harm.”