A man was arrested in Leeds this week as part of a major operation targeting drug dealing in the city’s night-time economy in the run-up to Christmas.
His arrest brings the total number of men and youths arrested in the crackdown over the last two weeks to 21.
Of those, 18 have already been charged with conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and have made initial appearances at court. 10 have been remanded in custody and eight are on conditional bail from court with exclusion orders from the city centre. Two other men are currently on police bail following their arrests.
On Wednesday morning (19 December) officers from Leeds District Serious Organised Crime Unit executed a drugs warrant at an address in New Farnley and arrested a 30-year-old man on suspicion of supplying Class A drugs and money laundering.
A large quantity of Class A drugs was recovered along with drug dealing paraphernalia and goods suspected of being bought through money laundering.He remains in custody while enquiries continue.
The wider operation has targeted the supply of cocaine, ketamine, methamphetamine and other so-called ‘party drugs’ being sold on streets around some of the city centre’s main bar and club areas.
It comes in response to information received from city centre residents and bars and clubs about an increase in street-level dealing to people going out in the night-time economy.
Door staff and managers have reported being threatened and assaulted when challenging those involved and there were concerns for the safety of customers and staff.
There has also been an increase in the number of assaults, robberies and thefts from people, which is believed to be linked to the increased drug-dealing activity.
Detectives from Leeds District Serious Organised Crime Unit and specialist officers from West Yorkshire Police Protective Services Crime deployed a range of tactics to build up an evidential picture of dealing activity on the ground before commencing their recent arrest phase.
They also worked alongside colleagues from the City Neighbourhood Policing Team using dispersal orders on known offenders to disrupt the illegal drugs trade on the streets and reduce other linked crimes.
Detective Superintendent Chris Gibson, Head of Crime for Leeds District, said: “We are confident that this operation will have dealt a significant blow to the organised supply of illegal drugs in the city centre’s night-time economy.
“We cannot and will not tolerate illegal activity which puts people at risk, leads to an increase in other types of offences and reduces people’s feelings of safety while enjoying a night out.
“We remain firmly committed to making use of every available tactic to target those we suspect of being involved in the organised supply of drugs, and we will continue to work alongside our partner agencies, businesses and the community to tackle this type of criminality and keep people safe.”
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