More than 80 arrests by BTP officers tackling County Lines drug trafficking
More than 80 arrests have been made by British Transport Police’s (BTP) new County Lines taskforce since it was launched in December.
In addition, nearly £20,000 in cash and a host of Class A and Class B drugs have been seized, alongside “lethal” weapons including knives, knuckledusters and a shotgun.
The new disruption taskforce has been funded by the Home Office in a national pilot to crack down on gangs couriering drugs and cash across the rail network and their exploitation of children and vulnerable people.
The figures mirror a recent report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, which highlighted BTP’s work on County Lines.
It praised the force for its efforts, including its work to identify vulnerable people involved in County Lines, its training of railway staff on the issue, and its work with the Railway Children charity.
BTP Chief Constable Paul Crowther said: “We are the specialist force for policing the rail network and my officers have great experience in tackling issues which span the nation, such as County Lines. We have seen first hand the devastating impact these exploitative gangs have on young people, and we are determined to disrupt this criminal activity.
“Since the founding of the County Lines taskforce we have seen excellent results, with 80 gang members being arrested and drugs and other potential lethal weapons being seized. With each arrest comes valuable intelligence on how these corrosive gangs operate, and likewise we can help safeguard exploited children from harm.
“Thankfully, the rail network continues to be a low crime environment, and with this Home Office funding, we will continue to take decisive action to shut down trafficking networks.”
BTP also has four specialist drug detection dogs working within the disruption taskforce, which have been trained to detect people carrying a vast array of different illegal substances within busy railway environments.
The four dogs and their handlers are deployed on intelligence-led operations across England, Scotland and Wales, working alongside uniformed and plain-clothes officers, as well as specialist officers trained in spotting the tell-tale signs of those with criminal intent.
The latest crackdown by the taskforce was a joint operation with Merseyside Police throughout the northwest of England and at Liverpool Lime Street station. The operation on Friday (January 17) was combined with a series of morning raids at homes in Merseyside and North Wales, with officers searching homes of suspected drug dealers.
Raid teams from North Wales Police, Merseyside Police and BTP were all involved. Home Secretary Priti Patel was also in attendance to witness first-hand the collaboration between BTP and other forces in tackling County Lines gangs.
The operation resulted in 16 men being arrested – eight from raids in Merseyside and North Wales and eight from policing initiatives at the transport hubs in Merseyside and North Wales. A number of mobile phones, Class A and B drugs and a stun gun were seized and 87 stop-searches were carried out at the transport hubs in Liverpool and North Wales.
Officers from Roads Policing also patrolled the main transport routes in a bid to identify vehicles being used by individuals known to be involved in wholesale County Lines drug supply and exploitation.
Ms Patel said: “I will not tolerate these abhorrent gangs that are terrorising our towns and exploiting our children. “I’m pleased to see such strong results from the police – they have my full backing in this crucial work. We will continue to support their efforts in confronting this threat with 20,000 new officers.”
Merseyside Police received £640,000 in government funding in November to help tackle and close down County Lines organised crime groups (OCGs) in its area.
Chief Constable Andy Cooke said these County Lines OCGs were responsible for the widespread distribution of illegal drugs in other parts of the country, including North Wales, Staffordshire, Cumbria, Cheshire, Lancashire, North Yorkshire, Northumbria, West Mercia, Kent, Devon Cornwall, Wiltshire and Scotland.
“As a result of government funding we have been able to set up Project Medusa, which consists of different types of operational activity designed to effectively disrupt and in turn bring down these OCGs,” he said.
“In the last two months the concentrated activity of our officers, working together with BTP and other forces in the UK, has led to the cutting of seven County Lines run by OCGs. As a result we have arrested 48 people and more importantly we have been able to safeguard 21 people who were being exploited by these groups.
“This initiative hits the criminals hard, but when it comes to the young and vulnerable people, who have been criminally exploited, we ensure that they are treated sensitively and with understanding. We are determined to sever the County Lines that blight our communities.”
North Wales Police Assistant Chief Constable Sacha Hatchett said the joint operation with Merseyside Police “underlines the fact that there are no borders when it comes to prosecuting those who deal drugs, or exploit others to further their illegal enterprise”.
