The menu of
operational options
Police action breaks down
into the following methods which can be carried out collectively,
singly and sequentially: -
Action against middle level
dealers or importers.
High profile operations,
targeting areas and key houses, offering comprehensive “sweeps” that
act against local networks of supply.
High visibility and local
presence of police in key locations making criminal activity less
likely. This involves community police physically located in high
crime areas, and able to improve trust through closer integration into
community life.
Ongoing continuing activity
against individual suppliers, based on gathering intelligence from
sources and test purchase and surveillance.
High profile, multi-agency
approaches in which crime and situational prevention approaches and
various actions to reduce opportunities for crime are coupled with an
arrest and operations strategy as above.
Action against clubs and
pubs, often in collaboration with licensing authorities.
Each of these has the
ability to make major inroads into local supply networks and to tackle
supply. However they need to be matched against the problem:
|
Type of selling |
Method of disruption
likely to have effect |
Considerations |
|
Proactive Street sellers
approaching people |
Visible street patrols
Passive dogs
Stop and Search
Jump-ons – sudden hold on to suspected dealers to retrieve drugs
before they are swallowed
CCTV – fixed and mobile
Environmental work
Section 18 searches |
Visible uniformed (and
non-uniformed) police presence has valuable role in disrupting
street sales, but less impact in achieving prosecution. It is a
preventative device |
|
Runners delivering drugs
to buyers who have arranged to meet |
Visible street patrols
Stop and Search
CCTV – fixed and mobile
Covert Surveillance
Test purchase
Source intelligence
Environmental work
Section 18 searches |
As above.
Source information is more
useful against the often unseen main dealer to whom runners work. |
|
Prostitutes providing
drugs to consumers- ‘punters’ - on the street |
CCTV
Civil controls on prostitutes – Anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs)
Section 18 searches
Street and Environmental work
Demand reduction initiatives |
Intimate search provision
is required.
The removal,
discouragement and inconvenience of punters is useful. |
|
Crack houses |
Surveillance
Warrants and raids
Civil controls – eviction
Source intelligence
Vulnerable tenant support schemes/treatment
Drug dogs |
Test purchase may not be
safe as officers may be expected to use the drug. |
|
House based crack sales |
Surveillance
Source intelligence
Test purchase
Warrants and raids
Civil controls
|
As above |
|
All |
Work with immigration
service and Customs re Foreign nationals in the UK
Presumptive drug sample testing |
Indicates the number of
foreign nationals involved in crack markets.
Presumptive testing
enables people to be taken straight to court and not bailed
pending analysis. |
|
