POLICE have seized thousands of pounds worth of illicit drugs and stolen goods and made 26 arrests in a series of dawn raids in Chester-le-Street, Durham city and surrounding villages.

During the course of last week 45 premises were visited across the divisional area, resulting in 33 crimes being detected, including burglaries, thefts, the handling of stolen goods and drug possession with intent to supply.

Officers have since been busy logging the recovered stolen goods, estimated to be worth in the region of £10,000.

These include a distinctive children's rocking horse, valued at £700, a £2,000 lap-top computer, a quad bike, jewellery, watches, garden equipment, Play Station computer games, car CD players and compact discs.

Drugs with a street value of around £4,500 were also seized, including amphetamine, cannabis and ecstasy. Det Insp Mick Nail, of Durham City CID, described it as an 'intelligence-led' operation which involved 25 officers per-day.

Speaking after the last of the early morning raids last Friday, Det Insp Nail said he was satisfied with the outcome, but he pledged the anti-crime drive would not end there. He said: "The public can be reassured that although this week's operation is over, others are in the pipeline for the run up to Christmas and into the New Year.

"We are determined to target those we believe are responsible for committing crimes in the Chester-le-Street and Durham police division, and, as a result, blighting the lives of people in our communities."

The crackdown, codenamed Operation Arouet, involved both uniform and plain clothes officers based at Chester-le-Street and Durham city stations.