Arrests made in Harlow, Enfield and Chingford as part of drug raids

More than 6kg of drugs were taken off Essex streets as part of County Lines Intensification Week between October 11 and October 17.

Thirteen County Lines have been disrupted as a result of the operation, Essex Police said.

A total of 55 arrests were made across the county and into London and other parts of the East.

This included Harlow, Enfield and Chingford.

Image: Essex Police

Other arrests were made in Southend, Westcliff, Leigh, Basildon, Grays, Chelmsford, Colchester, Clacton, Dagenham, Barking, Chingford, Aveley, Enfield and Bedford.

Of the 55 arrests, officers secured 39 charges, with 13 people released under investigation and three people released without charge.

Some of the items seized (photo Essex Police)

In total, police seized:

• £180,000
• 2.5kg of crack cocaine
• 2.5kg of heroin
• 56g of cocaine 
• 1.6kg of cannabis 
• 17 MDMA pills 
• 84 phone lines, including 9 county line phones
• £2,500 in designer clothing, bags and hats
• 2 knuckle dusters,
• 2 samurai swords
• 1 sword
• 1 zombie knife
• 1 hunting knife
• 1 large knife 
• 1 machete
• 10 people have been referred for safeguarding

Acting Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, of the Essex Police Serious Violence Unit, said: “Although our work did intensify during County Lines Intensification Week, the role our Op Raptor teams perform is very a much a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week one.

“The work they put into finding County Lines, investigating them, establishing who is behind them and then building cases against those people should not be underestimated.

“But our teams are specialists in their fields. They are experts in case building, which means our suspects will not know that an overwhelming case is quietly being built against them so they can be put before the courts.”