Two Merseyside drug operations scoop national awards

Merseyside Police is celebrating after scooping two prestigious national Home Office tackling drugs supply award 2006.

Wirral's Operation Hawk has been highly commended in the winner in the 'best example of enforcement linkage with the drug interventions programme' category and Operation Montrose has been highly commended in the 'best practice in asset recovery' category.

Operation Hawk has been running in Wirral since last year and its main aim was to reduce the harm that drugs can cause to communities, individuals and their families by working in partnership with the Wirral Drug Alcohol Action Team (DAAT).

Since the start of the operation, officers in the Upton neighbourhood have arrested over 350 people and seized drugs with a street value in excess of £3million. All of those arrested and charged with the offences relating to the supply of controlled drugs have been convicted.

Operation Hawk

A large and innovative marketing campaign accompanied the operation using the banner 'Operation Hawk - Reclaiming your neighbourhood'. Huge billboard posters and leaflets were created with catchy slogans such as 'Don't get up, we'll let ourselves in' 'This is your early morning wake up call' and 'Tell your mates you are going away for a bit.......like five years!"

Neighbourhood Inspector Ian Shaw who headed up the operation said: "This is a great result which the team worked extremely hard to achieve. I would like to take the opportunity to thank colleagues from across the Wirral who have regularly supported Operation Hawk. Their efforts have contributed significantly to this success."

Operation Montrose was highly commended in the 'best practice for asset recovery' category. The operation was a proactive operation which targeted the drug importation and distribution networks of an organised crime group while also tackling its financial infrastructure. During the operation the following achievements were met:

• Money seized totalling £24,351.300 which is forecasted to be £1,419, 776
• Over 563 kilos of controlled drugs have been seized valued at £18,741,500
• 59 drug trafficking offenders have been sentenced to over 340 years imprisonment.

Supt Steve Moore, head of the Force Crime Operations Unit said: " We are delighted to receive this award for Operation Montrose which is testimony to the hard work and dedication of my officers.

"This operation has ensured that a great deal of wealth which was the proceeds of crime have been removed from people who thrived on their criminal standing in the community. We have punished them where it hurts, in their pockets."