Drugs worth over £11.2 million have been seized off the streets of Cumbria in the past year.
Officers have seized substances ranging from heroin, to cocaine and amphetamine – as well as taking down numerous industrial-sized cannabis farms – as part of Operation Alliance, a county wide crackdown against serious and organised.
Several cases were also put together that jailed a series of organised crime groups that police said were cashing in at the expense of Cumbria’s communities.
Detectives and staff also seized suspected illegal money worth more than £4.3 million over the course of 2023 and continue to target criminal finance – with £4.5 million subject to criminal investigation.
Detective Superintendent Ian Hussey said: “The last year has seen organised crime groups jailed, vast amounts of drugs taken out of circulation and the disruption and dismantling of numerous criminal enterprises.
“We’re committed to taking on those serious and organised criminals who have no concern whatsoever about the consequences of their actions – and whose activities cause the most harm to our communities.
“These crime groups should be under no illusion: we will do all we can to disrupt them and put them behind bars – where they belong.”
Operation Alliance runs throughout the year and covers all the individual operations where officers target organised crime groups or aim to prevent or disrupt serious and organised crime.
This time last year the force shared updates on all the work underway – and this year, they are sharing the statistics of the work carried out in the previous 12 months.
Det Supt Hussey said: “Our officers work all-year-round to protect Cumbria against serious and organised crime.
“Throughout the last year operations, drug warrants and stop-searches have been carried out by specialist units and officers across the force.
“This has seen organised crime groups jailed, drugs taken out of circulation, online offenders sentenced and the disruption or dismantling of criminal enterprises across the county.
“Alongside the arrests and prosecutions, we also took action to safeguard many people who we suspected were at risk.”
Det Supt Hussey added the work is not carried out along and that various other law enforcement and partner agencies work together on Operation Alliance.
He said: “But, as always, the most important people in this is the public.
“To keep up the fight against this type of organised crime we need the public to let us know when they see anything suspicious in their communities.”
Cumbria’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall, said he felt the statistics would help reassure the public that Cumbria police are tackling serious crime every day.
He added: “I know that people are generally pleased to see officers on their streets, and that has real value, which is why the constabulary have given more resource to neighbourhood policing, including Community Beat Officers deployed right across the county – but much more crime goes unseen and police tactics need to reflect this, so much of their work to tackle serious criminals and their crimes is never seen but goes on every day.
“This update on police activity shows real success in bringing criminals to justice and I hope gives the assurance to the public that our police in Cumbria are actively keeping us safe.
“But I would also add as a warning to anyone who considers committing crime in the county that they will be pursued robustly and when caught they will face the consequences.
“The police work with multiple partners across the county but the most important partner they have in preventing and catching criminals is the public, we all have a part to play.”
