Nine people have been arrested as part of activity to track down the most wanted suspects across the North East.

Across the weekend, officers from Northumbria Police apprehended a number of people believed to be actively evading arrest.

As part of their enquiries, officers from the Force’s intelligence department pulled together a picture of those ‘Most Wanted’ across the region.

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Working alongside local neighbourhood officers, intelligence teams identified where suspects were believed to be staying, and over the weekend, searches were carried out.

On Monday (September 11), officers revealed that the activity saw six wanted people arrested for a range of offences, including failure to appear for court warrants, theft, arson, and prison recall.

And a further three people were arrested in connection with other offences.

The Northern Echo: A police helicopterA police helicopter (Image: NORTHERN ECHO)

Of the six arrested, two males had been actively evading police arrest for almost two years.

Following extensive enquiries, a 43-year-old man was arrested and transported back to prison after being wanted for breaching the terms of his licence.

A 35-year-old man was also arrested after being spotted by officers in Backworth area of North Tyneside.

At the same time, a 51-year-old man was also arrested for assisting an offender, and, following a search of a related premises, two females – aged 29 and 21 – were arrested for drug-related offences.

A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: "This was an exceptional effort between officers and staff and, thanks to their efforts, one person has been returned to prison and the rest will have their day in court.

"Several of these arrests were only possible because of information passed to us by you – members of the public – and we want to extend our thanks and ask that you please continue to support us.

"Some of these fugitives we arrested were deemed high-risk in our area and we are delighted that so many have now been located.

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"They have been purposely evading police and it is thanks to the tenacity of our officers that they have been brought into custody.

The spokesperson added: "Two of these fugitives had been wanted for a number of years, but the message should be clear to anyone actively evading arrest that we will never stop looking for you.

"You should always be looking over your shoulder and always be expecting a knock on your door – it’s only a matter of time before we bring you into custody."

Anyone with information about the whereabouts of an individual who is wanted by police can contact officers by calling 101.