Two-day county lines crackdown leads to 12 arrests in Norwich – Norfolk

A two-day joint operation between British Transport Police (BTP), Norfolk Constabulary and the Eastern Region Specialist Operations Unit tackling county lines activity in Norwich resulted in 12 arrests.

On 26 and 27 April, officers from BTP’s dedicated County Lines Taskforce patrolled the railway station and trains coming in and out of the city while Norfolk Constabulary focused on the city centre.

Arrests made on the railway included a 17-year-old male on suspicion of possession with intent to supply cocaine and a 21-year-old woman on suspicion of possessing criminal property after being caught with £3,000 in cash.

During the operation officers made vital interventions to safeguard vulnerable adults and children. These individuals are often targeted by gangs to sell or move their drugs.

DI Brian Buddo of BTP’s County Lines Taskforce said: “Joint working with our policing colleagues across the counties is vital to successfully disrupt the county lines business model.

“We deployed in plain clothes and uniform across the railway network connecting Norwich to its surrounding areas and seized large quantities of drugs and cash.

“The results demonstrate that a truly collective effort maximises our disruptive effect, but also makes a real difference to local communities that are being harmed through this exploitative criminality.”

The operation formed part BTP’s County Lines Taskforce’s year-round efforts to make the railway a hostile environment for organised criminals to move drugs and illicit cash across the UK.

A key aim of the team is to identify and safeguard vulnerable children and adults often exploited by these organised criminals to transport the drugs and cash between import and export locations.