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Wiltshire Police also confiscated nearly £50,000 as part of the tenth iteration of Operation Scorpion, the regional crackdown on drug crime.
Five forces collaborated from November 25 to December 1, focusing on child criminal exploitation and running in conjunction with the national County Lines Intensification Week.
In total across the region, 95 people now find themselves, at least temporarily, behind bars.
Police seized £47,863 in cash as well as 37kg of cannabis and 564 cannabis plants and 3.7kg of cocaine.
107 people were safeguarded, including 32 children.
Of those, 21 of the arrests were specifically in Wiltshire including 12 of the people safeguarded of which one was a child.
Child criminal exploitation (CCE) is where criminals groom and exploit young people into carrying out crimes on their behalf.
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This often involves drugs and county lines, as gangs use children and vulnerable people to sell drugs and move money.
Across the week, officers conducted a range of community-led engagement activities on CCE, including talks in schools, educational stalls at high-footfall locations in towns and cuckooing checks for vulnerable adults and children.
A range of enforcement activity also took place, as warrants across the counties resulted in tens of thousands of pounds of cash being seized and Class A and B drugs being taken off the streets.
Speaking on behalf of the five police forces, Wiltshire Police Chief Constable Catherine Roper said: “Operation Scorpion is about combining the resources, intelligence and enforcement powers of all the police forces across the South West to create the most difficult environment for those intent on dealing illegal drugs across our region.
“The results from the latest week’s regional activity of arrests and drugs seizures show that we continue to be effective in disrupting the illegal drugs trade – dismantling organised criminal gangs, removing illegal substances from our neighbourhoods and arresting those who deal them.
“We must also remember the on-going work by police and our partners to protect and support vulnerable people – often children and young adults – who are coerced to join these criminal networks. Bribed with gifts and money, once recruited, these victims are usually threatened with or are victim to violence, forcing them to remain in these criminal gangs.
“Safeguarding these vulnerable young people, along with protecting everyone in our communities, goes to the heart of the Wiltshire Police priority to create Safer Public Spaces for all.”
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Operation Scorpion is a collaboration between the five police forces in the South West region (Avon and Somerset, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire).
They work with their respective offices of Police and Crime Commissioners, the British Transport Police and South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU) to combine resources to tackle drug supply in the region and make the south west a hostile environment for drugs.
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“}]] 95 people have been arrested and nearly 40kg of cannabis found in a week of police activity across the south west. Read More
