Forty arrests made as GMP's Operation Avro swoops return to Oldham

A day of proactive policing returned to the district of Oldham this week.

On Tuesday (January 16), Greater Manchester Police's first Operation AVRO of 2024 hit the borough of Oldham.

Early morning warrants took place and resulted in items being seized, including drug paraphernalia, high-value Rolex watches, a sports car and a loaded firearm.

A total of 40 arrests for a range of offences, including drug supply, conspiracy to supply firearms and the importation of controlled substances occurred during the day of action.

A cannabis farm was uncovered in Chadderton, resulting in a male being arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis and a large number of cannabis plants being seized.

Oldham Neighbourhood Team, in partnership with Trading Standards, conducted six premises visits to check for illegal vapes and cigarettes.

Four premises had items seized totalling 1,313 vapes and 310 packs of illicit cigarettes, with a value of £20,411.

The adverse weather conditions resulted in considerably lower than normal traffic operation returns with the check site cancelled.

Despite this, there were 19 traffic offence reports issued, 3 vehicle seizures for no insurance and an arrest of a man on suspicion of a public order offence at Derker metrolink station.

Officers executed a series of warrants and targeted operational activity, leading to the discovery of a sophisticated chop shop.

Chop shops are often linked to car-theft rings as part of a broader organised crime enterprise.

Two recently stolen vehicles were found with their parts stripped and ready to be sold on.

One man was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to handle stolen goods.

Meanwhile, Oldham Youth Service and GMP hosted the second Youth Independent Scrutiny Panel.

During the panel, young people aged 13-19 watched body-worn footage and discussed how the officers handled the situation.

A Q&A panel to discuss policing, crime and feeling safe in Oldham was also held with senior officers.

A youth conference was also held with young people, in partnership with Oldham Council, earlier in the day at Oldham Athletic Football Club.

AVRO is a force-wide initiative that delivers a surge of extra resources and specialist officers to a different district within Greater Manchester each month.

Officers and teams deployed across the district will continue to undertake proactive policing in the area.

Chief Superintendent Phil Hutchinson, District Commander for Oldham, said: “We had a number of operations take place throughout the day in what was a busy day for our officers across the district.

“This year in partnership with Oldham Council we had more of a focus on young people, and our youth conference saw us engage with young people from a number of secondary schools from across the district where we discussed issues that affected them and their friends.

"That evening we held our second Youth Scrutiny Panel, where young people review police interactions with young people and are given the opportunity to question officers on tactics.

"The youth conference aimed to build trust and confidence with our young people and giving them a voice to shape how we operate in and around the Oldham area on key issues for the partnership.

"I must thank our partners at Oldham Council for engaging their youth service and letting them see how we work as a police force.

“These operations are excellent for the public but they are very good for staff morale.

"It sees a lot of resources, we execute a lot of warrants, and then go out and arrest people, that's why we joined the police.

"This is everyday activity for us - AVRO is an opportunity to showcase to the public what we do.

"Thanks to the community for their continued support.

"If you know of criminality, please contact us, either directly through your community team, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111."

What is Operation AVRO?

Operation AVRO is a force wide initiative that delivers extra resources and specialist officers to a different district within Greater Manchester each month and launched in Salford in October 2021.

Since then, it has travelled around the force with the operation targeting crimes and concerns that members of the public in that district have told GMP give them the most concern.

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