Proactive work by a local policing team has led to knives and drugs being seized from a house as the force continues its commitment to cracking down on knife crime.
Officers in Sneinton were patrolling when it is reported two boys were spotted acting suspiciously. After stopping them in St Christopher Street, they conducted a stop-and-search and as a result they recovered a quantity of suspected class A drugs.
A 17-year-old was subsequently arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply class A drugs and taken into custody. No further action was taken against the second boy.
Following the arrest, officers searched a property in Sneinton.
During the search of the property, they recovered two kitchen knives, a lock knife, and a large quantity of suspected class A drugs. They also recovered a number of empty deal bags and paraphernalia, such as gloves.
The recovery comes as Nottinghamshire Police pledges its commitment to the national Operation Sceptre campaign, which involves a week-long showcasing of the proactive efforts that go on all year round to target knife crime.
Sergeant Tim Register leads the city south Reacher team, who recovered the items, and said: “Thanks to the efforts of officers, three potentially dangerous weapons and a significant quantity of class A drugs are now out of circulation and a boy was arrested.
“The two very often go hand-in-hand and can be an indicator of wider, more serious criminality which, particularly as a proactive team, we are committed to getting ahead of and intercepting in its tracks. This is why we take this positive action, act quickly, and are so serious about tackling these issues.
“We understand the impact that drugs and knife crime can have, in particular on the community, and we hope that taking such swift action offers reassurance of our commitment and efforts to stamping out this type of crime.
“Enquiries are ongoing into this particular find, but we would urge anyone who has concerns or information about criminality in the area to get in touch. As officers who work in and know the local area, we are dedicated to listening to the community and targeting what matters to them.”
City south Neighbourhood Policing Inspector Karl Thomas said: “We would warn the public that there have recently been changes to legislation under The Offensive Weapons Act 2019 – meaning it is now illegal to have certain types of knives and other items even at home in private, as well as it being an offence to carry them in public.
“This now covers zombie knives, flick knives, butterfly knives, swords, throwing stars, knuckledusters and telescopic truncheons, for example.
“This discovery is a really positive result which came from initially recovering a small quantity of drugs during a stop-and-search.
“Our proactive Reacher team wasted no time in following this up with a search at a property, which led them to seize even more significant items, including knives.
“This is a particularly poignant time to have made such a recovery during Operation Sceptre, which shines a light on the good work both our neighbourhood and Reacher teams do all year round to tackle knife crime.
“As part of this national campaign, a knife amnesty is also under way which means people can hand in their knives without fear of prosecution. Alongside our proactive efforts, we would highly encourage anyone with unwanted knives to hand them in to their nearest drop-off point.
“By taking this opportunity, no matter the initial intent for possessing them in the first place, it helps to bolster proactive work that is ongoing and safely dispose of these potentially lethal items and stops them falling into the wrong hands.
“Every blade seized or surrendered is one less that can cause serious harm, and our message is simple. If you carry a knife or are thinking about doing so, it will not protect you but instead make you more vulnerable and put you in more danger.”
To find out more about the changes to the Offensive Weapons Act legislation, meaning it is now illegal to possess certain items in private as well as in public, search ‘Offensive Weapons Act 2019’ online.
