Towns' drug dealers are on police hit list
A POLICE crackdown on drugs that could result in dealers' doors being smashed down has been backed by Wadebridge's mayor.
The town together with Bodmin and the surrounding villages is the latest community to be targeted by a recently formed support team in Bodmin.
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The team targets anti-social behaviour by working closely with the neighbourhood policing teams and Tactical Aid Group (TAG).
Wadebridge mayor Elliot Osborne has pledged his support to the campaign.
Currently the new police team are targeting drug dealers and this has already had a number of positive results.
Since the initiative began in July officers have done more than 150 stop checks and carried out 24 warrants at residential properties, the last two in Wadebridge. In the latest raid a group of officers from the support team and Liskeard Target Policing Team (TPT) swooped on an address in Burlawn.
A quantity of what is believed to be heroin was found at the property. A 30-year-old male was arrested at the scene on suspicion of possessing Class A drugs and later released on police bail.
Police say more warrants are going to be executed in Wadebridge in the next few weeks and also in Padstow.
PC Danny Gooch, from the new support team, said: "We are operating a zero tolerance on all drugs users and dealers. Once we receive sufficient information to authorise a search warrant this will be actioned.
"We have already had several successful operations in Bodmin and will now be targeting other towns and villages. Wadebridge and Padstow are our next hits.
"We rely on information from the public so if anyone suspects that someone is using or dealing drugs at an address in either town of surrounding villages we would be interested to hear from them."
Mr Osborne said: "I fully support the actions the police are taking. It would be lovely to be able to say Wadebridge was a drug free town. I know this is not the case but maybe in time this is something we could promote. I would encourage anyone who has information to contact those police. Drug abuse is disgusting and we should do all we can to stop it."
Anyone with information is asked to contact PC Gooch at Bodmin police station on 08452 777 444 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
5 Comments
by Janie Hodge, Whitecross
Thursday, December 10 2009, 5:36PM
“The person arrested in possession of heroin and a known drugs dealer is released on bail! So that means he can carry on selling to addicts from a local council house. Has the world gone mad?”
by Blow In, Truro
Thursday, December 10 2009, 10:19AM
“I think the pathetic statisitics speak for themselves. .. Sounds like a lot of innocent people being stopped and searched, and harassed by the police- surely there are more important matters for the police to be attending to?...”
by Dave Joslin, St Austell
Thursday, November 26 2009, 9:00AM
“As far as I am concerned dealers in hard drugs are guilty of attempted murder and the charges and sentencing should reflect that. The threat of a very long sentence may, just may, act as a sort of deterrent. Forget their human rights they don't deserve it.”
by Jim Fischer, wade
Wednesday, November 25 2009, 10:28PM
“"We have already had several successful operations in Bodmin and will now be targeting other towns and villages. Wadebridge and Padstow are our next hits."
- my god, this man actually thinks he's in the wire...who needs to solve murders in the big city when you've got kids toking in co-op car park?
from the implications of the stats there - 150 stop'n'searches, 24 warranted door-bargin's, ONE arrest, it sounds like a whole lot more innocent people than drug dealers are going to be having the winter drafties going on....
but whaddya expect? i've lived hereabouts for 24 years and the whole time i've probably only known of about 5 drug dealers ever (at least 3 of whom gave up or went away)...and i've known of 0 problems caused by people who take drugs, to be honest - alcohol's what makes you fight and destroy stuff.
i'd willingly bet the wadebridge police force an ounce of pure chronic that they'll have less than 5% warrant-to-conviction rate
(although, congratulations on putting a positive spin on piss-poor statistics. you've reported one whole arrest from 174 police activities and made it sound like they're cat'n'mousing Keyser Soze. )”
by TimV, Pz
Wednesday, November 25 2009, 6:25PM
“"Promoting a drug-free town" may be a great sentiment but I think the Mayor may be blowing in the wind. Illegal drugs are an international multi-billion pound industry, that has defeated all government attempts to suppress it. Denial of the extent and nature of the problem is the first and most important obstacle to dealing with it.”