Police teams spread County Lines message during week of action

Police engaged with schoolchildren, football supporters and train passengers during a week of action to highlight County Lines drug dealing.

Officers took part in a series of engagement events during the national County Lines Intensification Week, which ran from 25 November to 1 December.

County Lines is a term used to describe gangs supplying drugs to other parts of the UK using dedicated mobile phone lines.

The week of action aimed to disrupt those involved and protect the vulnerable people they coerce into criminal activity.

The gangs frequently exploit children or vulnerable adults to move and store drugs - using violence and coercion to force people to do their dirty work.

Officers, working alongside Nottingham Forest Community Trust and the Crimestoppers charity, attended Forest’s home game with Ipswich Town on Saturday (30 November).

They helped raise awareness of County Lines among the attendance of more than 30,000 and also had displays on the scoreboard at the City Ground as well as full-page coverage in the matchday programme.

A further engagement event took place on the concourse at Nottingham railway station, with the support of British Transport Police and local young people’s charity Base51.

Officers also headed to schools including Meden School, in Warsop, and Nottingham High School to educate young people about the dangers of getting involved in County Lines.

Visits also took place to a number of young people who are suspected victims of cuckooing by drug dealers.

Detective Sergeant Sarah Gregg, of Nottinghamshire Police, said:

“County Lines is a national issue and we continue to work hard to identify criminal gangs, take out the drug dealing line and bring the offenders to justice.

“Proactive County Lines officers work closely with other teams in the force to tackle the problem throughout the year, but this week of action gives us an opportunity to highlight our ongoing work.

“Criminals involved in County Lines business models spread misery among the communities in which they operate, and this is why it is a priority for the force to target and disrupt those believed to be involved.

“The engagement work we carry out is equally important however, and I’d like to thank our partners for helping us reach so many people, from young people in schools, to football fans and public transport users, during the course of last week.

“The feedback we received from these varied audiences was extremely positive and it was pleasing to be able to spread our message so widely.”

Anyone who has information regarding drug dealing in their area, is urged to call Nottinghamshire Police on 101, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or dial 999 in an emergency.

For more information please visit: https://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/advice/county-lines