Weapons, cash and £55,000-worth of drugs seized following a major police operation - including dawn raids in Spalding and Lincoln

Around £55,000-worth of illegal drugs have been seized following a major police operation.

Spalding and Lincoln were among the towns and cities where officers carried out dawn raids last month in the battle against organised crime.

In total, 51 arrests were made and 35 individuals were charged with more than 100 offences.

Additionally, police recovered a significant number of criminal assets including £57,000 in cash, more than £8,000 in crypto currency and high-end designer watches and luxury trainers.

More than 10 weapons were seized including knives, machetes, batons, knuckle dusters and swords, reducing the threat of violence in communities.

The operation also saw 28 individuals identified and protected from further exploitation, many of whom were vulnerable young people and adults being used by criminal gangs to transport and sell drugs.

The crackdown, led by Cambridgeshire Constabulary, targeted drug supply networks across the county exploiting vulnerable people who traffic and distribute illegal substances.

Over the course of Operation Hypernova, which took place last month (March), officers carried out more than 30 dawn raids across Cambridge, Peterborough, Ramsey, Cambourne, Ely, Longstanton and St Ives, as well as out of county in London, Grimsby, Leicester, Newmarket, Spalding and Lincoln.

It followed weeks of intelligence gathering into those bringing class A drugs into Cambridgeshire and resulted in shutting down 50 active drug lines and seizing an estimated £55k of illegal drugs including cocaine, cannabis, crack cocaine and heroin.

“This operation continues to focus on those people who come into our county and exploit vulnerable people, be they drug users or vulnerable children and encourage them into selling or using drugs,” Detective Inspector Dan Miller, from Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s Intelligence and Specialist Crime Department, said.

“Once again, we have significantly disrupted organised criminal networks across the county who are profiting from the exploitation of vulnerable people and the misery caused by illegal drugs.

“The arrests, subsequent charges and seizures send a clear message that we will continue to relentlessly pursue those who run and profit from county lines drug dealing in Cambridgeshire.”

Operation Hypernova is the culmination of months of intelligence and partnership working in a bid to make the county hostile towards county lines drug dealers, prevent further exploitation of young and vulnerable people and reduce serious street-based violence.

The proactive work was carried out with support from the Metropolitan Police’ Orochi Team, the Eastern Regional Specialist Operation Unit (ERSOU) and British Transport Police to identify those individuals posing the greatest threat to the community.

Operation Hypernova, which is the biggest of its kind in the county, has resulted in a total of 149 arrests, 134 drug lines closed and 105 years in prison sentences.

If you suspect drug dealing is taking place in your area or see anything suspicious or out of place, report it.

You don’t have to be certain, just concerned.

You call police on 101 or alternatively can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers (https://crimestoppers-uk.org) to report anonymously, or by calling 0800 555111.