POLICE say suspected out-of-town drug dealers have been driven out of Selby following a crackdown.

Inspector Martin Wedgwood said North Yorkshire Police had been working with Selby District Council in recent months to address issues raised by local people.

This had resulted in the repossession of four properties and eviction of respective tenants due to antisocial behaviour and criminal activity.

"As a result, suspected out-of-town drug dealers who were staying at some of the properties have been left with no-where to stay and have been driven out of Selby – some to prison and some awaiting charges," he said.

"The suspects were staying locally after bringing drugs from out of the area in a practice known as 'county lines,' where dealers from urban areas travel to smaller county towns to sell drugs.

"Information from the public, combined with police activity and working alongside the local council, has resulted in properties in Alma Terrace, Flaxley Road, Gant Walk and New Millgate being repossessed by the council."

He said a 20-year-old man and 15-year-old boy from Bradford, who were travelling to Selby and using a property in New Millgate as a base, had both been charged with possessing cocaine and heroin and the tenant was currently facing eviction proceedings due to complaints about antisocial and criminal activity at the property.

"In another case, a man in his 30s who was staying at a property on Gant Walk has since returned to West Yorkshire and is now in prison on unrelated offences," he said."The two residents of the property who are subject to a number of criminal investigations, have since fled the area after the property was repossessed."

A property in Alma Terrace had been repossessed and boarded up following numerous complaints about antisocial behaviour, poor state of repair, overpopulation and the presence of local drug users and dealers from out of the area and it was now a no-go area for both users and 'county lines' dealers. A tenant had also been evicted from a property in Flaxley Road following reports of suspected drug dealing from the property.

He claimed out-of-town drug dealers were now 'struggling to get a foothold in the town.'