Nine arrested as £18m drugs seized

The first operation saw officers execute seven warrants at properties in Lichfield, Burntwood, Rugeley, Coventry and Birmingham.

Cannabis with an estimated street value of £125,000 was seized from a property in Lichfield.

As a result of the warrants on Wednesday, seven men were arrested in connection with drugs offences.

They have all been bailed, pending further inquiries, to a later date.

In the second operation, carried out in Cheadle in the Staffordshire Moorlands, officers acted on information received and stopped two vehicles on the A52 on Wednesday morning.

A search of the vehicles resulted in the discovery of approximately 40kilos of suspected Class A drugs including heroin with an estimated street value of £15m and cocaine with an estimated street value of £3m.

Two men were charged and appeared before magistrates in Newcastle-under-Lyme yesterday (Friday).

Barry Briggs, aged 43, from Seaforth Grove in Leeds, was charged with possession with intent to supply a controlled drug of Class A.

Dave Vandeven, 29, from Rotterdam, was charged with two counts of being concerned in the fraudulent evasion of a prohibition on the importation of a Class A drug.

The raids were part of Operation Nemesis, Staffordshire Police's ongoing operation to tackle drug dealers.

Chief Constable Jane Sawyers said: "These operations resulted in two separate, significant seizures of Class A and Class B drugs which will now not make it onto the county's streets.

"Nine people have been arrested in connection with drugs offences and detailed investigations into their activities are now underway.

"I hope this sends out a clear message to those thinking of dealing drugs in Staffordshire – think again.

"We are committed to tackling drugs misuse in the communities we serve and will continue to target those who carry out such criminal activity."