POLICE have arrested 27 people across North Yorkshire as part of a national week of action to tackle 'county lines' drug dealing.

Offences ranged from possession of controlled substances to supplying controlled drugs, and two bladed weapons were recovered as well as over £5,000 in cash and £10,000 worth of suspected drugs, said a spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police.

They said that:

*In York, a 20-year-old man was sighted passing an item to someone in a suspected drugs deal. He was detained and searched, and found to have three wraps of what was suspected to be a class a drug and a quantity of cash. Further searches in custody found £640 in cash and two further wraps of what was suspected to be a class-A drug, and he was released with conditional bail not to enter North Yorkshire.

*In Selby, officers conducted a welfare check at a property and found a 19-year-old man from West Yorkshire, who was arrested on suspicion of supplying drugs. A bag of white powder, suspected to be cocaine, believed to have a street value of £2,100, was found in the address. The man was interviewed and bailed with conditions not to enter North Yorkshire.

*In Whitby, quantities of suspected magic mushrooms, cocaine, and cannabis were found at a property, along with suspected class-A drugs and class-C drugs, cash and a knife, and a 20-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of procession with intent to supply.

*In Harrogate, police detained a man from Manchester in Wetherby Road, who was suspected to be in the area dealing drugs. Approximately 30 packets of suspected cocaine were found during a search of the 31-year-old man and vehicle, and he was arrested on suspicion of possession of intent to supply a class-A drug.

The spokesperson said 60 welfare visits were made to vulnerable people suspected of being vulnerable to county lines exploitation, and were given advice and information about staying safe, how to spot the signs of county lines activity and how to get help from specialist organisations for drug and alcohol addiction.

They said county lines was the name given to a form of organised crime in which drug dealers from larger cities exploited vulnerable people - including children - and forced them to deal drugs in smaller towns and cities.

Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Simpson, who supported the coordinated the week of activity, said there had been a 'fantastic set of results' but stressed it was 'very much business as usual for North Yorkshire Police.'

He said: "Our teams are out and about conducting warrants and intercepting the supply of drugs week in week out.

“Drug use has serious implications on people’s health and impacts on the quality of life for communities."