Twenty one people have been arrested in Brighton and Hove in a crackdown on drug dealers and drug users.
Eighteen of those arrested have been charged with 40 offences, mostly supplying and having heroin and crack cocaine.
The arrests were made during the latest phase of Operation Reduction, the long-running campaign to tackle the drugs trade locally.
Chief Superintendent Graham Bartlett, the Sussex Police divisional commander for Brighton and Hove, said: “Operation Reduction continues to make a real difference to local neighbourhoods and communities in Brighton and Hove by helping more people get the treatment and support they need.
“But anyone involved in drug dealing at any level in the city will be identified, pursued and prosecuted.
“The operation is successfully breaking the cycle where people are committing offences in order to get money to buy drugs.”
Operation Reduction began in 2005 with a number of objectives, including reducing the level and fear of crime associated with drug use.
It was intended to tackle the supply of drugs as well as the demand for them.
Support
To reduce the demand for drugs, the aim was to increase the number of drug users receiving treatment and support to stop taking drugs.
Sussex Police officers have worked with the Brighton and Hove Drug and Alcohol Action Team throughout the continuing operation as well as the charity CRI, also known as Crime Reduction Initiatives.
Chief Superintendent Bartlett said: “Ongoing work such as this operation and other initiatives and police activity in the city have seen significant improvements in certain crime areas over the last five years.”
He said that crime in April, May and June this year had been measured against the same period in 2006-07. The results were
- Total crime fell by 1,989 offences (23.7 per cent)
- Violent crime fell by 903 offences (40.6 per cent)
- Criminal damage fell by 37.7 per cent
- Vehicle crime fell by 15.4 per cent
- Drug offences fell by 34.5 per cent
He added that household burglaries had fallen by nearly 50 per cent over the past ten years.
