Portsmouth suspected drug dealers arrested at Fratton railway station in police county lines operation

British Transport Police, Hampshire, and Ministry of Defence Police officers sprang into action at Fratton station.

Nearly 40 people were stopped, some carrying up to £240 worth of cannabis on them, in the operation on Wednesday evening.

Officers had laid a trap for county line dealers, aiming to catch people bringing crack cocaine and heroin and the trade’s notorious violence into the city.

One Portsmouth man, 22, was arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of drugs after being caught with multiple phones and £4,500 cash on him.

Another man wanted on a court warrant for supplying a class A drug was detained.

BTP County Lines Taskforce lead, Detective Superintendent Gareth Williams, said: ‘Since our dedicated taskforce was introduced with Home Office funding in December 2019, we have built a strong picture of how county lines organised criminals are using the railway network to transport drugs and cash between locations.

‘On a weekly basis we run joint operations at stations and on-board trains with local forces across England, Scotland and Wales – putting pressure on these criminals and disrupting County Lines activity wherever it occurs.’

Key to the operation’s success detecting drug carriers was seven-year-old MoD Police sniffer dog Ted.

So sharp is the trained drug dog’s nose, he can detect cannabis smoked days beforehand with traces buried deep in clothing fabric.

‘I’ve had a joint but I ain’t got nothing on me,’ said one person identified by the dog.

Anyone sniffed out by Ted was stopped and searched outside Fratton station.

Of the 39 people searched, 14 had cannabis on them.

Seven were reported for possible prosecution.

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One youngster who darted after seeing police vans while cycling towards the station wasn’t quick enough to escape.

Officers gave chase, detaining and searching him before he was released.

Police issued three community resolutions, and one Covid-19 fixed-penalty notice to a person flouting lockdown restrictions.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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