53 people have been arrested and suspected class A drugs have been seized in a major drugs operation in Lancashire.

Cash, weapons and mobile phones have been seized and suspected class A and class B drugs have been recovered as part of a major national operation to crackdown on county lines offenders.

County Lines is the transportation of illegal drugs from one area to another, usually by children or vulnerable adults who are coerced into it by criminal gangs.

During the week, 44 men and four women were arrested, along with five people aged under 18.

South division, which covers the areas of Preston, Chorley, South Ribble and West Lancashire took part in a range of targeted and preventative activity for County Lines Intensification Week.

Thousands of pounds worth of class A and class B drugs were seized along with cash, 27 mobile phones and weapons.

Some of the activity included:

·       A joint operation with British Transport Police at Preston Train Station whereby a man was arrested and 1.5kg of cannabis was seized along with £2,500 in cash.

·       A drugs warrant in Ormskirk whereby cocaine worth around £3,000 was seized, along with cash and mobile phones. A 21 year old man was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply and money laundering.

·       A vehicle stop in Chorley in which cocaine worth around £2000 was seized along with a large amount of cash. A 27 year old man was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply.

Lancashire Constabulary’s force lead for county lines, Becky Smith said:“We are working harder than ever to crack down on County Lines criminals who bring drug dealing and violence into our communities.

"This week’s activity is a snapshot of the work carried out across Lancashire every single day to disrupt those involved in organised crime and tackle County Lines. Along with our partners in Children’s Social Services, Health and Education, we will continue this work, also driving awareness in schools and identifying those vulnerable to exploitation so that we can provide appropriate safeguarding.”

“Our intention is to make Lancashire an uncomfortable place for these criminals to operate and we are committed to continuing to work alongside our partners and other forces to close down these lines, protect vulnerable people and remove those who exploit from our streets”

During school visits, neighbourhood police officers have provided education on how gangs will criminally exploit children and adults and have given advice on signs to look for if somebody is being exploited.

Some of these signs include children frequently going missing and then returning home, having more clothes, mobile phones, or cash than usual, receiving excessive text messages or phone calls and disengagement from school.