ALMOST £100,000 in cash, a total of 300g of loose Class A drugs and more than 1,100 wraps of cocaine were seized in police raids. 

Police teams carried out the raids for County Lines Intensification Week between March 7 and March 13.

In total, officers from the Serious Violence Unit seized: £96,509 in cash, 145.92g of heroin, 126g of crack cocaine, 30.5g of loose cocaine, 1,149 prepared wraps of cocaine, 11g of ketamine and five weapons.

The arrests were made across the county and into London and Kent including in Southend, Westcliff, Leigh, Basildon, Billericay, Benfleet, Brentwood, Canvey Island, Halstead, Grays, Harlow, Chelmsford, Colchester and Clacton.

Temporary Detective Chief Inspector Neal Miller, of the Essex Police Serious Violence Unit, said: “Although our work did intensify during the week, the role our Op Raptor teams perform is very much a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week one.

“The work they put into finding County Lines, investigating them, establishing who is behind them and then building cases against those involved should not be underestimated.

“But our teams are specialists in their fields. They are experts in case building, which means our suspects will not know that an overwhelming case is quietly being built against them so they can be put before the courts.

“Whilst these results clearly show the work we are carrying out is working, we are under no illusions that some groups of people do think they are above the law and they do think they can sell their product in Essex. But our message has been consistently clear; drugs and drug dealers are not welcome in our county.

“The people who do this cause significant harm to our communities and we make no apology for pursuing them relentlessly.”