Four people arrested, up to £1m and designer shoes seized in policing operation aimed at putting criminals on the back foot

Merseyside Police has today (Monday, 22 June) arrested four people and recovered more than £1m cash along with Class A drugs as part of a drugs operation targeting people believed to be involved in serious organised crime.

Four warrants were executed in Aigburth, West Derby, Vauxhall and Anfield resulting in the arrest of three men and a woman (a 40-year-old man  and a 33-year-old woman from Aigburth were  arrested on suspicion of money laundering and possession of criminal property); a 35-year-old man from West Derby was arrested on suspicion of money laundering and a 38-year-old man from Anfield was arrested on suspicion of Possession With Intent to Supply Class A drugs and possession of criminal property).

Extensive searches have been carried out at all the properties. At the address in Aigburth officers seized Class A drugs, approximately £15,000-£20,000 in cash, along with two Rolex watches, a diamond ring, and a large amount of designer wear which were seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA).  In the West Derby address officers recovered approximately £8000 in cash, and designer goods, watches and electric bikes were seized under POCA.  In Vauxhall officers found a number of vacuum sealed bags containing between £600,000 and £1m in cash) . At the Anfield address officers recovered approximately £10,000 in cash, six kilos of what is believed to be Class A drugs plus a number of drugs wraps and golf ball sized drugs packages, they also seized a quantity of designer goods including a large TV and approximately 50 pairs of shoes (some of which were valued at £800) under POCA.

 These arrests are part of Merseyside Police's commitment to tackling serious organised crime and those responsible for the widespread supply and distribution of Class A drugs, firearms enabled crime and serious violence.

Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Richardson, from Merseyside Police said: “The action taken by police officers in Merseyside today is a key part of our ongoing commitment to tackling serious and organised crime and making our communities safer.

“The arrest of these four people today is the result of a lot of meticulous, hard work by officers.

“Class A drugs blight the lives of the people who become addicted to them. Some addicts can then go on to fund their habit through acquisitive crime, including burglary, theft and robbery, and this has a negative impact on the lives of people living in the communities where drug dealers and organised crime groups operate.

“Criminals involved in the supply and distribution of controlled drugs don't care about the impact that their illicit trade has on decent members of the public, all they care about is the money they can make. They think they are untouchable and they live a lifestyle that is beyond their means and often have no legitimate employment to account for the money which pays for their fancy holidays and designer clothes.

"Today, using legislation under the Proceeds of Crime Act we have seized a huge amount of cash along with high value designer goods and other items, which we believe have been bought through money made from criminal enterprise, including drug dealing. These items will go to auction and the bitter sweet irony, for those involved in serious organised crime on Merseyside, is that a percentage of the money raised through the sale of these items will go back in to fighting crime.

"Our message to those involved in serious organised crime on Merseyside is that you cannot escape justice and we will do everything within our power to disrupt organised crime groups and put offenders before the courts.

“No-one should have to put up with drug dealing and the associated violence and gun crime it often brings. We will work with our communities to improve the quality of life for decent, law-abiding people and I would urge people to keep helping us do that by reporting any drug dealing or gun crime to the police or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”