FOURTEEN people were arrested and a quantity of cannabis and Ecstasy seized as part of a two-night anti-drugs operation targeting pubs and clubs in a North-East town.

Uniformed officers from Darlington police station were joined by special constables and British Transport Police (BTP) as they carried out more than 50 searches on revellers during Thursday and Friday nights.

Sniffer dogs, on loan from the BTP and led by the transport force's own handlers, were used to identify people suspected of possessing drugs.

All of the people arrested in the operation, codenamed Attempo, were males, typically in their late teens and early twenties, and all from the Darlington area.

They were arrested either in pubs or clubs or in the queue to get inside.

All but one man, who was arrested for possessing an offensive weapon - a knife - were detained for possession of illegal substances under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

Various amounts of cannabis and Ecstasy were seized from those arrested, some of whom were issued with formal cautions, while the rest were released on police bail pending further inquiries.

The sniffer dogs used, a labrador and a collie/setter cross, were trained not to bark at people suspected of having drugs, but to sit silently either in front of or beside the person.

While all of the arrests were made at locations in the town centre, pubs in outlying areas, such as Yarm Road and Hurworth, were also targeted.

Landlords had been informed of the planned raids by police at a recent Pub Watch meeting for licensees, however, they had not been given a date.

On both nights, officers took to the streets at about 8pm and cotninued visiting licensed premises until after midnight.

PC Ian Squire, of Darlington police, who was one of those involved in the organisation of the operation, said: "There were no public order problems and the reaction we had, both from the licensees and from members of the public, was generally favourable.

"The action over the past couple of nights is all part of a long-term strategy to combat the use of controlled drugs in our area."