HUNDREDS of thousands of pounds worth of drugs, two guns and more than £100,000 in cash and luxury goods have been taken off gangs in Merseyside throughout March.
Fifteen people have also been arrested during the month, which culminated in a day of action on Friday, March 31, as Merseyside Police officers engaged in the EVOLVE project to help break the cycle of gang culture.
Focusing the project in Liverpool and Knowlsey, officers carried out numerous warrants, land searches, traffic operations, and high visibility policing out on the streets.
Officers also visited local primary schools, had mobile police stations for people to raise concerns and have been working with partners and the communities.
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This resulted in the seizure of more than £8,000 in cash, three high-powered performance vehicle cars, a luxury watch, 1kg of crack cocaine, 1.5kg of suspected ecstasy, 1000 tablets of suspected Class A drugs, 271 cannabis plants from two cannabis farms and 6.5kg of cannabis.
Officers also seized one quad bike, one scrambler bike, one mountain bike, two e-bikes and a knuckle duster; carried out searches in 10 premises; and made several referrals to partners for housing, drug misuse. A Trading Standards operation also saw £800 worth of counterfeit cigarettes seized.
The assets will be sold and converted into money under the Proceeds of Crime Act, which will see cash and goods seized from the gangs given back to the community.
Chief Inspector Tony Fairhurst, one of the senior officers on the EVOLVE project, said: “Our officers working in EVOLVE neighbourhoods, which are those that have been identified as suffering most from organised crime groups, are committed to eradicating the pain and misery those criminals’ cause.
“We want to make it clear to those criminals that the life of crime they have chosen is not the profit-making option they thought it was.
“We will be using all the powers available to us to take back their ill-gotten gains. We will be seizing their cars, their watches, their cash, their luxury commodities, their drugs and we will be giving the proceeds back to the communities they have blighted.
“We will be stopping those suspected of being involved in crime, their family members, their friends and their business associates. We know who they are and we will be using all the legislation we can to determine if they are staying on the right side of the law and those found on the wrong side could be facing lengthy prison sentences.
“We are going to be breaking their recruitment models and are going into schools, along with our partners and community groups, with a very powerful message to young people who are at risk of being coerced into a life of crime.
“This activity is not a one-off. We have EVOLVE teams whose jobs are dedicated to tracking these criminals, their associates and taking those found to be breaking the law off the streets. We are determined to help residents in EVOLVE neighbourhoods and ensure they are once again places people love to live, work and visit.”
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