Heroin find leads to raids and three arrests

Three houses were searched and three men arrested for drugs offences after police acted on tip-offs in Royton.

The initiative began on Friday when heroin and a lock knife were seized by officers as part of an anti-drugs initiative, Operation Broadway, after officers stopped an orange Peugeot 106 on Rochdale Road.

A 39-year-old man was arrested for drug and knife offences.

They also executed a drugs warrant at a house on Kingston Drive and found heroin and cannabis.

Two men both aged 46 were arrested on suspicion of possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply and bailed until August 3.

A red Mitsubishi Shogun was seized from outside the house.

Further inquiries led the officers to a house in Seville Street where they recovered cannabis, about £300 in cash, and drug equipment including scales and a cannabis grinder. A fourth person, a 22-year-old man, was issued with a formal police cannabis warning.

Mobile phones were also seized from a third house on Hillside Avenue.

Sgt Rob Howarth said: “These arrests are just the latest in a string of operations we have been running in the Royton and Shaw areas to target street-level drug dealers who are blighting our communities.

“We have listened to what our residents want, which is to see these people taken off the streets and stop drugs from getting out onto the streets. We will continue to target criminals who line their pockets by peddling drugs, and using Proceeds of Crime Act legislation we can also seize their assets.

“None of this would be possible without the help and support of the local community, and their information is absolutely vital to us.

“If you do have any information, please contact us on 0161 872 5050 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”