A NORTH-EAST man has been arrested as part of a nationwide crackdown on drugs ordered over the Internet.

The 41-year-old, from the Chester-le-Street area of County Durham, was one of 22 arrested across the country suspected of buying Class A drugs over the Internet.

Operation Ismene was developed by the National Crime Squad (NCS) as a result of intelligence from an investigation carried out by the Louisiana branch of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The intelligence was passed to police across the country, who have been taking action over the past two weeks.

Synthetic drugs similar to MDMA, known as ecstasy, have been seized.

The DEA began its investigation in March after it was established the death of a US man was linked to an overdose from the drug 2-CI.

It was bought from a website registered to a man in Las Vegas who was selling drugs worldwide.

Parcels containing 2-CI were exported to the UK, and the NCS passed information to police forces.

NCS deputy director general Jim Gamble said: "The Internet has become the street corner for many drug users.

"This operation demonstrates our ability to respond to new crime trends and protect members of the public from harm.

"Action taken over the last few weeks will hopefully prevent further deaths and overdoses."

The Chester-le-Street man was arrested by officers and has been bailed pending inquiries.