Drugs and cash seized during morning raids at suspected stash houses

This morning, detectives from our Serious Organised Crime Group executed eleven warrants at addresses across Rochdale and Lancashire, believed to be connected to a large-scale drugs conspiracy.

As well as raiding their homes, several warrants were executed at premises we believe to be stash houses for the OCG. A search of these revealed several mobile phones, quantities of cocaine, and cannabis plants.

An estimated £20,000 cash has also been seized.

Eight people, aged between 27 - 56, have been arrested on conspiracy to supply drugs. They remain in police custody for questioning.

These are the latest arrests which come as part of our ongoing investigations into the criminal use of encrypted mobile phones. In 2020, as a result of the NCA take down of Encrochat – the encrypted messaging platform once used by criminals across the globe, we were handed hundreds and thousands of messages from the once secure platform. This gave us an insight into the criminal underworld which had never been seen before.

Over the last few years, we have been systematically working our way through these messages, attributing them to criminals across the region, and we have seen great huge successes to date.

Our organised crime teams have taken down some of Greater Manchester’s most sophisticated criminals, putting them behind bars for over 1000 years, undoubtedly saving countless lives as a result of huge hauls of drugs and firearms.

Detective Sergeant Rich McCorry from our Serious Organised Crime Group said: “The ability for criminals to benefit from the proceeds of drugs is a key driver for organised crime, and we have specialist detectives working tirelessly to eliminate the key players from criminal networks across the region.

“Today’s action is a result of months of hard work by detectives whose proactive investigations into the drugs trade in Manchester has led them through these doors today.

“We will continue to employ every possible tactic to target and disrupt organised crime groups, and ensure they are brought to justice.”