County lines: Leicestershire drug raids see 63 arrests

A total of 63 people have been arrested as part of a crackdown on county lines drug dealing in Leicestershire.

Officers said three lines from Nottingham to Birmingham were dismantled as part of a national week of action from 7 to 13 March.

More than £30,000 in cash was seized along with firearms and drugs, including heroin and cocaine.

The force said it also identified and safeguarded 54 vulnerable adults and children.

County lines is a distribution model that involves urban gangs expanding their markets for crack cocaine and heroin into smaller towns by setting up phone lines through which they sell Class A drugs.

Those in charge of the phone lines often recruit children and vulnerable adults into trafficking the drugs in order to avoid detection themselves.

Ch Supt Jonny Starbuck said: "Thanks to this national week of action, we have arrested some significant individuals, closed down three lines and taken a large quantity of drugs off our streets.

"As well as enforcement activity, a major focus for us is protecting vulnerable people who are drawn into the world of drug dealing.

"Whether that's young people who are forced to sell drugs on behalf of gangs, or those who are forced to let drug dealers use their homes as a base for selling drugs in a form of exploitation known as 'cuckooing'.

"They often don't realise they are being criminally exploited but with the right support from us, and our partners, they can get the help they need."

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