A SERIES of Operation Bumblebee raids carried out by plain clothes and uniform officers has resulted in the recovery of £30,000 worth of property.

A staggering £20,000 worth of the haul was made up of counterfeit CD games and tobacco, which were recovered from a car boot sale held at Chalon Way on Sunday, November 16. As a result, officers will be targeting car boot sales in the future.

In all, 30 officers from St Helens took part in the operation which culminated in the arrest of 15 people for residential burglaries, nine of whom were also charged with the handling of stolen goods. A total of 29 premises throughout the borough were searched.

Police also checked on people with curfew conditions on bail and five people were found to be in breech. Small quanities of cannabis were recovered from a number of premises and £1,500 worth of what is believed to be heroin was recovered from an address in Newton-le-Willows.

Fourteen people were charged with a variety of offences and it is anticipated that further charges will follow.

DS Don Gordon, who co-ordinated the series of raids throughout the week, said: "Our latest Bumblebee Operation has been a huge success and we've proved to burglars that we mean business.

"In the run-up to Christmas we will be following on from the raids and targeting burglars in the area. But the public can help too. Christmas is a time of rich pickings for burglars and people can help to limit the opportunity to commit crime by using their common sense and making sure their house is secure."

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