Machetes, drugs and guns among police raid finds
OPERATION REACHER TEAMS HAVE ARRESTED 94 PEOPLE
FIVE guns, three machetes and £80,000 in cash has been taken out of the hands of criminals across Nottinghamshire in just two weeks.
Inspector Marcus Oldroyd, from Nottinghamshire Police, said Government cuts and austerity had meant certain organised crime groups were able to “manifest.”
But that “breathing space” is being taken away after 12 new crime fighting teams have been launched to disrupt and dismantle those trying to live lavish lifestyles on the back of crime.
The new Operation Reacher teams, which were launched two weeks ago, have arrested 94 people and seized dozens of vehicles, six believed to be stolen.
The team has also carried out 37 early morning raids on properties across the county believed to be involved in criminal activity, which includes growing cannabis. So far, they have taken nine knives, a sword, three machetes and a knuckleduster and seized more than £80,000 in cash. In one property in Bilborough, £50,000 was uncovered as well as an imitation firearm.
In Eastwood, £20,000 of Class A drugs were taken while a raid at a property in St Ann’s uncovered a stash of heroin, cocaine, cannabis and cash.
Inspector Oldroyd, who started on the Operation Reacher team in Bestwood in April 2018 and was behind the formation of the 12 new teams, said cutbacks and austerity the force faced 10 years ago allowed some of these gangs to “manifest”.
He added: “It has allowed them breathing space simply because of cutbacks which will have impacted on the level of service you can deliver.
“But now being able to re-establish this – in a
Reacher way – we are enforcing harder but also proactively engaging with the community.
“It is like a recipe for baking bread. You don’t eat bread without flour or bake it without water. The villains are on the same page.
“They are not going to be involved in drug dealing without large quantities of cash and they not going to carry a firearm if they are not connected to drugs. Cash comes with the drugs and drugs comes with the guns. When we execute these warrants you do find more than one commodity.”
He said it was about “stamping out the virus” in these communities and that once one criminal enterprise is taken out, another can appear elsewhere in the county.
“Villains are saying on the streets you can’t move in Bestwood because the police are all over it, so we are mindful of diverting crime to other areas.”
He said there are numerous gangs operating in the area, both “organised crime gangs” or “emerging crime groups”. He said police were aware of who they were and were continuing to track their movements.
Chief Constable Craig Guildford, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “As I have previously mentioned, this is neighbourhood policing with teeth and we have really hit the ground running.
“To see so many arrests, tens of thousands of pounds cash and drugs recovered in just two weeks is excellent and demonstrates our commitment to putting resources at the heart of our communities.
“Over the next weeks and months people will see a wide range of proactive work from the teams, including drugs warrants, speeding and nuisance bike operations, weapons sweeps as well as high-visibility patrols, pop-up community engagement events and officers being out and about.”
To see so many arrests, tens of thousands of pounds of cash and drugs recovered in two weeks is excellent Craig Guildford, Notts Police