A MAN and a woman who were arrested following police raids have pleaded guilty to supplying Class A drugs while two other alleged dealers have appeared in court.

The three men and one woman appeared before District Judge Peter Ward yesterday as police conducted more raids in Nelson and Colne in which three more people were arrested.

Father-of-two Qasim Akbar, 29, of Sackville Street, Brierfield, admitted three counts of supplying heroin and one of supplying cocaine. An allegation of offering to supply drugs was withdrawn.

The defendant was committed in custody to be sentenced at Burnley Crown Court on September 28. District Judge Ward warned the defendant a significant custodial sentence was inevitable.

Graeme Tindall, defending, said Akbar, a part time taxi operator in Brierfield, was a user of drugs and started street dealing to fund his own habit. He was now drug-free.

Lisa Wilson, 29, of Thursby Road, pleaded guilty to three counts of supplying crack cocaine and was remanded in custody to be sentenced at Crown Court on September 28. The defendant had no previous convictions.

Qamar Zaman, 32, of Halifax Road, Brierfield, is accused of three counts of supplying heroin. He will face committal to Crown Court on October 11 and was remanded in custody until September 6. He did not enter pleas.

John Jenkins, 33, of Regent Street, Nelson, faces three allegations of supplying heroin. He did not indicate any pleas and was also remanded in custody until September 6 towards committal proceedings on October 11.

The four were arrested early on Monday morning after undercover investigations under Operation Nimrod, which is targeting dealing and the use of hard drugs.

A further three people were arrested yesterday (WED) morning as the operation continued. Police raided houses in Oak Street, North Street and Cleveland Street in more early morning raids.

Again, the suspects had been investigated covertly, and were arrested on suspicion of supplying class-A drugs.

Inspector Russ Proctor, who had led the operations, said: "We will leave no stone unturned when searching out drugs dealers and the latest arrests demonstrate we mean business. The message to those people who persist in dealing drugs in our towns is we know who you are, we will seek you out and we will arrest you.

"Information provided to the police from the community has been vital in this operation. We receive many calls through the confidential Crimestoppers service and would urge the public to continue to provide this information to us.

"These raids are just the beginning of the process of making Pendle a safer place. We need the community to continue to support us and are very grateful for the enthusiasm in which they get involved. Together we can make this a safer, more harmonious town."