Police swoop on suspected multi-million pound drugs ring with series of dawn raids

More than 320 officers targeted addresses across Teesside, Greater Manchester, County Durham and North Yorkshire as Operation Cobweb attempted to snare almost 30 suspected drug dealers.

The 15-month investigation, one of the largest in Cleveland Police’s history, has identified more than 100 courier runs involving the gang, which has seen the streets of Teesside flooded with heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine and ecstasy.

Officers from the force’s organised crime squad have been monitoring the suspected dealers’ actions for more than a year to collect enough evidence to raid the suspects’ homes today.

“This is one of the biggest investigations that we have undertaken,” said Detective Inspector Dave Mead, who is leading the operation. “It is one particular network focusing on dealers in the Oldham and Rochdale with a series of couriers bringing Class A drugs into the Cleveland force area.

Cleveland Police arrest a man in Raglan Close, Stockton

“There has been 105 journeys between the Greater Manchester area and Cleveland in the last 12 months and we have already had a number of couriers taken into custody.”

Properties in the Stockton, Redcar and Cleveland and Middlesbrough areas were raided this morning along with the caravan park at Flamingo Land.

Officers from Greater Manchester Police along with detectives from Cleveland Police knocked down doors at properties in Rochdale and Oldham.

Before this morning’s raids the police had already recovered 10kg of Class A drugs of a very high purity level along with 21kg of cutting agent.

More to follow later today