Two arrested as police execute multiple drug warrants across Harlow
Crime / Wed 28th Aug 2024 at 02:03pm
TWO men have been arrested on suspicion of supplying drugs after warrants were executed at four addresses across Harlow.
Officers from Harlow Community Policing Team, Op Raptor and our Operational Support Group (OSG) entered two properties at 7am this morning and made arrests before conducting searches at two other locations linked to the individuals detained.
They also visited a flat in the town following reports of cuckooing.
The warrants are part of the Clear, Hold, Build project to eradicate criminal activity and regenerate areas of The Stow.
Clear, Hold, Build is a Home Office-backed scheme that brings together public services to tackle offending and address underlying issues affecting the local community.
The aim is to produce sustained, long-term change in places that have been blighted by serious and organised crime by pursuing offenders, breaking up and dispersing gangs, and creating strong, resilient neighbourhoods.
Warrants executed at nine addresses in Harlow and Chelmsford on the 30 July led to six people being charged with being concerned in the supply of Class A and B drugs.
Inspector Leanne Archer of Harlow Community Policing Team said:
“The Stow has previously seen incidents of violence and drug dealing but we are working with our partners to drive down crime and make The Stow a safer and more attractive place for residents and visitors.
“This latest set of warrants sends a very clear message – if you deal drugs in Harlow, you will get caught.
“Alongside our enforcement activity to identify and arrest those involved in violence and drug dealing, we want to discourage people from carrying weapons and educate them about the dangers.
“Last week we conducted a knife amnesty in the area when we spoke to residents and businesses about the new knife legislation and people handed over knives for us to dispose of.
“Our officers are out engaging with the community and soon we will open our partnership hub in the shopping centre where people will be able to access support and information from our officers as well as the NHS, youth services, Mind and Citizens’ Advice.
“We want people who live in The Stow to feel reassured that we are there to help them, and I hope to see as many local residents as possible at our next engagement event at The Essex Skipper pub on 11 September.”
james nicholson
2024-08-28 17:19:00
Harlow police should focus on class a drugs and leave the weed crackdowns tbh, the worst thing about weed is the smell, but its amazing for pain relief and for takeaways. Think of all the extra resources they could put into issues like rapes that go unsolved or robberies that, again go unsolved simply because drugs is an easier path than investigating prolific burglars etc. Essex police:the path of the layabout cop
Adam
2024-08-28 18:26:07
End the war on drugs and we would have billions to spend on other things and police would not dress like they are going to war.
Mike
2024-08-28 19:21:56
Some ridiculous comments on here. Drugs and drug dealers are the scourge of our communities. A large percentage of the violence on our streets is because of drug dealers and drug gangs. So many health problems are caused by drug addiction and abuse, and this then has a knock-on effect on the NHS’s ability to treat other patients. Legalising some drugs, or being more tolerant about others , some isn’t going to ease any of the problems.
Mike
2024-08-28 19:22:30
Some ridiculous comments on here. Drugs and drug dealers are the scourge of our communities. A large percentage of the violence on our streets is because of drug dealers and drug gangs. So many health problems are caused by drug addiction and abuse, and this then has a knock-on effect on the NHS’s ability to treat other patients. Legalising some drugs, or being more tolerant about others, isn’t going to ease any of the problems.
Adam
2024-08-28 19:32:42
Mike what we are doing costs billions and frankly we are losing. It is not up to government to regulate what people do. Legalisation would remove drug dealers etc plus stop people being criminalised and pushed into a life of crime. It would also remo e a massive burden on the criminal justice sector.
Mike
2024-08-28 20:04:05
Adam. But who has to pick up the pieces when the users spiral into addiction and the health issues this causes? Im not sure that the NHS could cope with the increased burden. And no drugs are 100% safe - legal or not. We also know that drug use can increase aggression, which could result in more violence.
Reg
2024-08-28 20:38:02
Mike, should we also ban medicine?
Mike
2024-08-28 21:27:31
I think thats a silly comment really Reg. Medicines are there to help fight medical problems. Yes, medicines have side effects, but I guess its a balance as to whether the particular medicine benefits the patient overall. Taking weed out the equation, because I understand that it can help with certain medical conditions, but with other drugs - cocaine, heroin, crack cocaine etc - what medical benefits do these bring??
Reg
2024-08-28 21:51:51
Cocaine can be used as a local anesthetic and heroin for severe pain relief, typically for palliative care. Should we be denying this type of treatment?
james nicholson
2024-08-28 22:54:37
Dear Mike, until the 1960s/70s you could buy morphine over the counter in many medicines, to this day militaries use amphetamines to fuel their troops. Drugs are not the problem, lack of education regarding their abuse and pushing it under the rug so to speak and letting the police deal with it is what started the drugs crisis in the first place.
Anon
2024-08-29 06:37:39
We're losing the war on drugs. I don't like them, and I fully support the police's efforts to tackle the illegal drug trade, but we should consider a different tact like decriminalising them. If class A drugs cost a fraction of what they are now, and the purity of the drug could be controlled by pharmacists, addicts wouldn't need to rob/commit burglary/shoplift for their £30-£50 fix if they could get it on prescription, possibly for free or a few quid. Feeding a drug habit via prescription would allow NHS programmes to monitor habits and support addicts with their recovery. With purity and dosage assured, there would be less overdoses or bad reactions to tainted drugs, alleviating the burden on the NHS. This wouldn't make our country safer, criminals deal with drugs due to the profits involved. If drugs were legalised, they would move on to other areas of crime that was more lucrative, maybe protection rackets or large scale theft? I'll never forget talking to a Dutch policeman on his country's relaxed attitude with cannabis. He disagreed strongly with this and in his words, allowing their citizens to freely take cannabis led to an increase usage of harder drugs like heroin, so the country's drug problem got bigger. Legalising class A drugs sits uneasy with me, but I genuinely think it's time we try this for the reasons I've mentioned here.
Pete
2024-08-29 10:32:13
Drug gangs only exist because they have customers. The likes of Michael Gove have admitted to taking cocaine. There is a lot of hypocrisy around substance use. Alcohol is legal despite the misery it can cause people on the receiving end of drunken abuse. Cigarettes are legal despite the health risks and unpleasantness to non smokers. We are happy to take all sorts of medicines to help us feel better. So I tend towards Adam's perspective, legalize "street" drugs, make them "healthier" and safer, raise tax income and reduce crime and policing costs. Will that be worse than the current situation, I doubt it.
Derek C.
2024-08-29 10:49:51
James Nicholson, you seem to think bring an officer of the law is a simple case of "just doing" - since you think the police are lazy layabouts, how about you go and apply for a job. Show us how it's done by someone who clearly took a briefcase to school...
Hey Big Spender
2024-08-29 11:04:45
Pete - alcohol does cause misery to so many people and families. Cigarettes are pretty awful too, but people don’t steal on a large scale to grab their latest fag fix. Recreational drugs are a problem in society, no point dismissing that fact. The gangs cause a wider misery to law-abiding people who have their houses burgled, their cars nicked off their drives, their children targeted by drug gangs, all have a knock-on effect to someone somewhere, all because some people have a recreational drug addiction! Mike was right, drugs are a scourge on society. Then we have the addiction problems…ah always a sob story somewhere isn’t there? Their choice to take drugs and the resulting addiction, which becomes a burden for the NHS. Of course, these people know that the good old NHS will pick up the pieces to wean them off the damn things. We as adults, all have a choice and responsibility for ourselves. If you choose to take drugs regularly, don’t bleat about your bad choices further up the chain, grow up and be an adult, instead of being a drain on society. Cannabis, if harvested by the pharmaceutical profession, shouldn’t be a problem then should it? It’s when it invades other people’s lives by way of cloying smell and resulting behavioural problems by users, then it and other drugs become a problem. Oh and studies have shown that cannabis IS a gateway drug for the next drug further up the chain. Oh Reg, educate yourself on the use of cocaine. Street cocaine is used very differently to that kind administered at your local dentist!
Hey Big Spender
2024-08-29 11:14:31
James Nicholson - Rapes and robberies are often the end result of someone who takes drugs, or with the latter, working for drug gangs! Oh and if you think you have what it takes to be a better police officer, go and apply for a job with Essex Police! You would soon get a wake-up call if your application was successful!
Reg
2024-08-29 12:19:15
Big Spender, you are absolutely right and you've changed my mind. Now I think about it no one ever steals for their alcohol or smoking addiction. We should ban tea and latte's as well, they are gateway drugs to stronger drinks like espressos and black coffee.
Fact or Fiction
2024-08-29 13:18:31
Really...are you really suggesting we multiply these stats by a few million! In 2021, the Department for Transport statistics showed that the number of casualties in relation to drug-driving was 2,500. This is a surge of 260% since 2012. Between 2014 and 2021, 64% of casualties in collisions where an impairment drug was detected were fatalities. 91% of those fatalities were drivers with drugs in their system, showing that those most affected were the drug drivers themselves.
Pete
2024-08-29 19:57:57
HBS, cigarette duty evasion is ongoing I believe, I would guess, without facts, that it is also linked to other crime. The existing drug laws and enforcing thereof are a failure. Legalising would perhaps change the whole scenario. You have supported this perhaps without realizing when you say that people don't steal on a big scale to get their fag fix. If drugs were legal and controlled would people have to steal to get them ie if they are on the same level as fags. Certainly I think the drug supply chain would be severely disrupted. Without trying, we really won't know. If the cost of policing and prisons is reduced perhaps there would be more to spend on tackling social issues at source
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