POLICE have reinstated ongoing drug concerns as a key priority for the coming weeks in order to send out a no-nonsense message to those who continue to deal illegal substances.

The North East ward, and particularly Grimethorpe, has fallen under the spotlight in recent months and resulted in disruption operations picking up over a summer-long crackdown on offenders which has seen multiple arrests, seizures and convictions take place.

Local residents’ intelligence has been key, officers from the Barnsley North East Neighbourhood Policing Team said, who opted to keep the issue as their priority for the next six weeks having uncovered a so-called ‘county lines’ operation which has seen criminals flit between South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire.

The latest success came last Thursday when a male motorbike rider was detained and was found with class A drugs and more than £1,000.

A police spokesperson said: “The supply of drugs has been raised as a concern in the area by residents, with our officers also noticing a pattern of suspected drug dealers coming into the force area from West Yorkshire, using the movement between the two county lines to hide their activity.

“Work was quickly started on how this drug supply could be stopped.

“Barnsley North East officers knew that they need to work closely with members of the local communities to build information and intelligence pictures around the movements of these suspected dealers, especially which vehicles they used.

“Work in the area ramped up, acting on the intelligence profile which was built over a year.

“In under a year we have had more than 35 possession with intent to supply investigations, with many of these already securing charges and going through the courts.”

It comes after the government confirmed a specialist policing unit skirting the border will be set up to target drug running in and out of the area to try and protect communities which are being exploited by criminals.

Sergeant Richard Wilson, who heads up the Barnsley North East Policing Team, paid tribute to residents whose information has led to arrests.

“We can’t do what we do without the support from our residents - our officers can’t be everywhere at once and so they quickly started working with members of the public to gather a wider picture of how these criminals moved around,” he added.

“Most of these investigations have come from successful stop and searches of vehicles.

“We had information shared to us by members of the community around what cars were being used to transport drugs around the area, as well as what routes they would use and what times they would travel.

“It quickly became apparent that many of the vehicles we were stopping were travelling either from or to the West Yorkshire area, taking advantage of the border between the two counties and coming over to South Yorkshire to deal drugs.

“For example, two officers stopped a vehicle acting suspiciously and when they approached the vehicle they noticed that the driver tried to hid something under a seat.

“Upon a search, a large quantity of suspected cocaine and heroin were located.

“Officers also stopped a vehicle believed to be used in the supply of drugs.

“Upon a search, the two occupants were found to have around £7,000 worth of suspected class A drugs in their possession.

“The two men have been charged for multiple drug offences and are currently going through the courts.

“By persistently targeting a drug line we effectively remove those at the lower end of the supply chain which has the effect of forcing those with more control to run the lines themselves.

“This puts those higher up the chain at risk and provides an opportunity to target those causing most harm.”

As part of the new funding and policing team, specialist support services will be extended to help the vulnerable people and children who are exploited by this trade.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The appalling reality of county lines drug running is that criminal gangs exploit children and teenagers to run drugs, further drawing them into violence and serious crime.

“We’ve also seen competing drugs gangs running operations into small towns and communities also tackling violence and knife crime into those too.

“Officers at both South and West Yorkshire Police have already made important progress in combatting drugs running in the area, and this funding will help the force go further to put a stop to this evil practice.

“We are going further to protect children from being criminally exploited by investing millions into policing and introducing specific offences that properly recognise the harm it causes and punish those who choose to inflict this pain.”