Eight arrested during major drugs raid at multiple properties in Bedford
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Eight people have been arrested following a major police operation to smash an organised crime ring.
Nine warrants were carried out in the early hours of this morning (Tuesday) across Bedford and the surrounding area as part of an investigation targeting suspected ‘enablers’ of organised crime gangs involved in large-scale cannabis cultivation.
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Hide AdEight men – six in their 50s, 40s and 30s from Bedford, and two in their 20s from Northamptonshire – were arrested.
Six men from Bedford have now been charged.
The arrests were made on suspicion of offences including drugs supply, fraud, cultivation of cannabis, money laundering as well as encouraging or assisting offences.
All suspects were taken into police custody for further questioning, where they remain.
Officers from Bedfordshire Police’s specialist Operation Costello team are also expected to apply for a closure order on a business premises in Bedford as part of their investigation.
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Hide AdShocked onlookers took to social media during one of the raids – in Meadway – with one saying they could hear screaming while another saw police remove cars from the scene.
Detective Superintendent Nick Skipworth, leading Bedfordshire Police’s Operation Costello crackdown on organised crime, said: “What we’ve done today is a little bit different.
“We’ve not just gone after the criminals. We’ve gone after the people who we suspect are enabling criminal organisations to profit.
“Enablers are people who assist and support organised crime groups by letting them premises or supply them with materials to proceed with their criminal ventures.
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Hide Ad“It is therefore vital that we look to apprehend those involved and ensure they can’t operate in our communities.
“We will continue to go after enablers to make Bedfordshire incredibly hostile to organised crime.”