Man with 45cm machete and 19-year-old with £3k of cash and drugs arrested during police operation at Northampton Railway Station
A man with a 45cm machete and 19-year-old with £3,000 of cash and drugs were among those arrested during a police operation at Northampton Railway Station, according to British Transport Police (BTP).
BTP elite County Line Taskforce, working with Northamptonshire Police and Thames Valley Police, took part in a two day operation at Milton Keynes and Northampton stations.
They used passive drugs dogs and knife arches among to crack down on county lines activity across the region.
Three active deal lines were identified, £25,000 in cash was seized along with £9,000 worth of class A drugs and a 14 kilo cannabis haul with a street value of around £210,000.
Northampton results
- During the operation, a 20-year-old man was spotted acting suspiciously and making obvious attempts to dodge the knife arch at Northampton station. When he was approached by offices and a search conducted he was found to have a machete with a 45cm blade concealed in his jogging bottoms, according to BTP. Ivan Yao of Lytchet Way, Enfield, was arrested and subsequently charged with possession of an offensive weapon.
- A 19-year-old man was also searched at Northampton Railway Station, after officers received intel. He was found to be in possession of around £3,000 in cash as well as quantities of crack cocaine and heroin. A subsequent search of his address uncovered more class A drugs, according to BTP. Daniel Lake, aged 19 of Abbey Bridge, Nottingham, was charged with three counts of possession to supply class A drugs.
- Five people were arrested outside a property in Northampton when officers visited a suspected cuckooing address and found a drug deal in progress. A sixth man, Alexandru Bozga was arrested when officers again witnessed a drugs deal in progress. A search of his house recovered more than 10 kilos of cannabis with a street value of £150,000 and £13,740 in cash, according to BTP. Bozga, aged 24, of Greenfield Avenue, Northampton, has been charged with possession with intent to supply class B drugs and possession of criminal property. He was remanded in custody from court to await a trial date.
Detective inspector Ian Henderson, from BTP’s County Lines Taskforce, who led the operation said: “Make no mistake – our taskforce is waging a war on county lines drugs gangs and we will not rest until we have dismantled this evil trade which profits from misery and addiction and the exploitation of the vulnerable.
“This operation, in conjunction with our colleagues at Thames Valley Police and Northants Police, is yet another significant step towards achieving this goal with deadly weapons, drugs and profits from criminal enterprise taken off the streets.
“We are always on the network whether you spot us or not; if you’re using the railway to transport drugs, weapons or cash and exploiting the most vulnerable in our society then your days are numbered.”
Three warrants were also executed in the Milton Keynes area from intelligence received, resulting in a further three people being arrested for possession with intent to supply class B drugs after four kilos of cannabis was recovered along with £2,000 in cash.