Police Raid Minute By Minute (2024)
Police Raid Minute By Minute (2024)
Transcript
00:00Come on in, come on in, come on in, come on in.
00:24Every day across Britain, police raids take place in secret.
00:29Police!
00:30Stay near the wall! Get off the wall!
00:35Filmed over four years, we've gained exclusive access
00:39to some of the best rage teams in the country.
00:46From major organised crime groups,
00:48supplying drugs to criminal counterfeiters,
00:51the law is fighting back, catching the crooks red-handed.
00:56Quantity of cash.
00:58Each raid is about strategy.
01:01Police officers!
01:02Surprise.
01:07Getting results.
01:08Police will find them and they will bring them to justice.
01:11Police!
01:12And putting the criminals behind bars.
01:15Police!
01:16Straight, straight, straight.
01:28In South Wales, an elite police task force
01:31works to tackle organised crime.
01:37Known as Tarion,
01:40it's about to undertake one of its biggest ever operations.
01:46Targeting a large group supplying drugs across South Wales.
01:52It's our duty to ensure that we bring people to justice
01:56by dealing, supplying, controlling the drugs.
01:59That's our job and that's what we aim to do every single day.
02:03Morning, everyone.
02:05Morning, morning, morning.
02:09Months of investigation has led to this point.
02:13So we're at the stage now of the investigation
02:15where we'd like to arrest the suspects
02:17and that's really the purpose of today's briefing
02:19and the activity today.
02:21Covert surveillance has been ongoing for weeks.
02:25It's identified individuals at all levels of the drugs operation.
02:29These three men are of particular interest.
02:35This is Leon Jean,
02:37ex-Welsh professional footballer.
02:42He played a significant part in facilitating
02:45and supplying drugs around the Cardiff area.
02:48This is important footage which helps build a lifestyle
02:52and association picture of Leon.
02:56The next significant player is Carl Flynn.
03:00Carl is from the Merthyr area.
03:05We believe he plays an important part
03:08in the supply of drugs into the Welsh Valleys.
03:11He has been seen through surveillance
03:15He has been seen through surveillance
03:18meeting up with organised criminals in the Cardiff area.
03:25And finally, John Smith,
03:28who though is a significant player
03:30is not as significant as Leon and Carl.
03:37John Smith is an ex-amateur boxer.
03:41He is more of what we call the courier
03:44of the controlled substances rather than the actual supplier.
03:49Intelligence gathered, it's now time to take action.
03:56As most of South Wales is still sleeping
03:59more than 100 police officers are preparing to strike.
04:03Some of them are anonymous because of their roles.
04:06Team 2 is a guy called Leon Jean.
04:09We should be well known again in the Cardiff area.
04:12The plan is to raid multiple addresses a week apart.
04:15They're hoping to bag the major players
04:18before word of the operation spreads.
04:21First up, Leon Jean.
04:24The search team for that is TST2.
04:27So when suspects are in custody,
04:29if you let the team leaders know,
04:31they can let us know in the command room
04:33and we can obviously then tick them off the list.
04:35It is always difficult to know which one to go for first
04:39because you have to review what intelligence and evidence
04:42you've got against each member of an organised crime group
04:45and then plan your arrest phase
04:47as a result of how the evidence and intelligence indicates.
04:51We're going to be using a reciprocating saw
04:54to make a cut in a door
04:56to enable us to then breach it, OK?
04:58A specialist entry team, as the name suggests,
05:01means they're specially trained officers
05:04to enter all types of premises using specialist tactics.
05:07They are quick, efficient
05:09and they enable us to observe evidence.
05:14For Leon's address, we'll be looking to use the saw
05:17to go in quickly and efficiently.
05:24The more you raid, you can actually feel the tension
05:27because your adrenaline is running.
05:29You know, it's been months and months
05:31to get you to this stage.
05:33When you do it once, you don't know
05:36what you're actually walking into on that particular day.
05:39Back in the command room, tensions are also high.
05:42It's a waiting game as the teams move into position.
05:51I know some of you may not know this individual.
05:54I know him from years ago.
05:56If he's there, he is quite fit.
05:58He's an ex-footballer and he will try and run.
06:00So if you get him, pin him down quick as
06:02and make sure he's cuffed and secured.
06:06They're soon all in place.
06:08In that case, OPCOM,
06:10we're already at the pause point,
06:12ready for your instruction.
06:14Yeah, that's noted.
06:16OPCOMs to Team 2 and Team 4.
06:18Move forward to your FAP and strike, strike, strike.
06:23We like to find Leon
06:25and then whatever items we're looking for
06:27is electronic devices, such as mobile phones
06:29and anything which we can find on the ground.
06:31We like to find Leon
06:33and then whatever items we're looking for
06:36is anything which will indicate his involvement
06:38within the drug supply.
06:42We are hoping that the intelligence is correct.
06:46Come on, come on, come on, come on.
06:48Come on, come on, come on.
07:02He's here!
07:04He's here!
07:06He's here!
07:09Coming up...
07:11a major clampdown
07:13on the sale of illegal tobacco.
07:15Straight away
07:18This is behind the counter.
07:20It's foreign hand-rolling tobacco
07:22so I'll be taking all that.
07:26And it's counterfeit trading
07:28on a scale never seen before.
07:31They take advantage of every loophole
07:33and everything they possibly can
07:35to make as much money as they possibly can.
07:48The black market in illegal tobacco
07:50is worth billions of pounds.
07:52Foreign and counterfeit cigarettes
07:54are smuggled into the UK
07:56avoiding tax and duty.
07:58People need to ask themselves
08:00where is my money going?
08:02When they pay their four or five pounds
08:04the shopkeeper will only get
08:06a little bit of that.
08:08The rest of the money will probably
08:10go towards organised crime.
08:12The black market in illegal tobacco
08:14is worth billions of pounds.
08:16The rest of the money will probably
08:18go towards organised crime.
08:26This is the Wolverhampton
08:28Trading Standards Team.
08:30Good afternoon.
08:32For all those who don't know me
08:34I'm Diane Slack.
08:36I'm the Tobacco Control Officer
08:38in Trading Standards.
08:40Today, Diane is leading
08:42an intelligence-based operation
08:45following tip-offs that they're selling
08:47under-the-counter cigarettes.
08:49A couple of days ago
08:51our operative managed to buy some cigarettes
08:53that we've identified as counterfeits.
08:55So what I'm hoping to do
08:57is when we go in
08:59we'll find hopefully their store of illicit tobacco.
09:03This illegal trade
09:05cheats taxpayers out of billions of pounds
09:07in government revenue
09:09and Diane is committed to fighting it.
09:12I am hoping that all the intelligence
09:14is correct.
09:16There's a lot of behind-the-scenes work on this.
09:18Lots of research.
09:20As they pull up
09:22there's confusion.
09:28I'm feeling panicky
09:30because I've let two gentlemen
09:32leave the shop.
09:34One of them could be the owner
09:36or be responsible for the shop at that time.
09:42So a police officer and I
09:44decide to run after them.
10:02We've gone into the shop
10:04as two men have just come out
10:08and they said they were just customers
10:10but there's nobody there whatsoever.
10:12Lots of people are on their phones at the moment.
10:16They soon find a possible
10:18reason why the shop is empty.
10:22Straight away
10:24this is behind the counter.
10:29We have a mixture there.
10:33It's foreign hand-rolling tobacco.
10:35That's not allowed in the country
10:37and I mean it's just the wrong
10:39packaging.
10:41So I'll be taking all that.
10:45I know as soon as I look at them
10:47that they're dodgy
10:49because they're not in plain packaging.
10:51Some of them have got foreign writing on.
10:53You can pick up some of them
10:55and they say they're duty-free.
10:57They're not allowed. It's as simple as that.
10:59Diane manages to track down
11:01a number for someone claiming
11:03to be the shop manager.
11:05What's your name?
11:07Two minutes.
11:09OK, we'll wait.
11:11Alright then, thank you.
11:17OK, you're the owner of the shop, are you?
11:19I'm the manager.
11:21We've met before, yeah?
11:23Yes, we have.
11:25Right, I'm here today because
11:27we had complaints about illicit tobacco
11:29being sold from the shop.
11:31What I'm doing is I'm going to
11:33make a note of everything I see
11:35with that receipt and I'll be in touch.
11:37OK then, sir.
11:39One packet Benton & Hedges gold.
11:41Oh, yeah.
11:43And then four more
11:45packets of Golden Virginia.
11:47The man is unhappy
11:49with Diane's visit.
12:01I realise
12:03that they're upset with me
12:05but I have a job to do and I am going to do it.
12:11They're taking away
12:13revenue, there's health risks,
12:15there's other crime risks
12:17involved.
12:19If you'd like to sign there for me, please.
12:21It gives me a sense of
12:23relief that I've taken them
12:25off the street.
12:27We've got counterfeit and we've got
12:29non-duty paid cigarettes and we've got foreign cigarettes.
12:31It's some that are
12:33less likely to be sold to children
12:35and stuff like that, which is my main concern.
12:47Cheetham Hill.
12:49Just north of Manchester's city centre
12:51and the focus of a
12:53major police operation.
12:55Cheetham Hill is
12:57right on the fringes of the city centre
12:59which unfortunately has now
13:01become an epicentre for
13:03counterfeit crime.
13:05There's no signs, there's no
13:07shop frontages, there
13:09are metal shutters. And where
13:11behind those metal shutters are
13:13the counterfeit shops.
13:21The counterfeit trade is worth around
13:23£8 billion in the UK,
13:25half of which is estimated
13:27to come through Cheetham Hill.
13:29Each street's worth
13:31and some of those streets are
13:33entirely dominated by counterfeit shops.
13:35That size is unprecedented
13:37anywhere else in the UK that we know of.
13:39The area's
13:41been labelled as the counterfeiting
13:43capital of Europe.
13:45It's illegal trading on a gigantic
13:47scale.
13:49Do I think this is organised crime?
13:51Yes. I don't think I've
13:53ever seen anything quite like it.
13:55They're making a significant amount of money.
13:57Millions would probably be
13:59an underestimation.
14:01Their vast amounts of profit
14:03are drawing in some really clever people
14:05who want to commit really bad crime.
14:09We've had people sexually assaulted inside the shops.
14:11People are getting locked in the shops.
14:13If the police come or trading
14:15standards, they shut the shutters and lock
14:17big metal doors.
14:19It's a counterfeit crime wave.
14:21You can't have
14:23criminals affecting
14:25a community in such a stark way.
14:33Time for a major crackdown
14:37and Operation Vulcan.
14:39The scale of Operation Vulcan
14:41is nothing like we've done in GMP before.
14:43Over 200 different
14:45people involved in it,
14:47not just cops.
14:49Early morning in Cheetham Hill
14:51and the Vulcan team is preparing
14:53to strike.
14:55A bit of trepidation.
14:57What risk am I putting my officers to?
14:59Some of these buildings are horrific,
15:01really dangerous conditions.
15:03We've also got, don't forget,
15:0550, 60 people who work
15:07for these crime groups out on the street
15:09who could at any time become
15:11hostile towards us.
15:13And health and safety this morning
15:15and human rights, we're all happy
15:17to take those considerations.
15:19Time to hit back at the criminals.
15:35We've got really specialist equipment
15:37now to cut off the doors to make sure
15:39the entry is as quickly as possible.
15:41They'll then have a steel door behind that
15:43which is bolted and we break that off.
15:45We'll just clear this first.
15:53Just to get in is a task in itself.
16:01Police!
16:03With the first shop shut down
16:05and thousands of pounds worth of
16:07fake goods seized, they now
16:09need to make sure the criminals don't
16:11return as they have before.
16:13If we just carried on
16:15doing it the same, I'm not going to
16:17succeed. Doing it a different way,
16:19structured around clear hold build
16:21is, I think, really important.
16:25Clear hold build
16:27is a tactic used by the military
16:29to clear the area,
16:31stop the criminals coming back
16:33and to redevelop it for the long-term
16:35benefit of the local community.
16:37This is a major new strategy
16:39for the police.
16:41That clear phase is really important
16:43where we get rid of the baddies that you've been telling us about
16:45for so long.
16:47Time to strike the next
16:49targets.
16:51With relentless enforcement
16:53on the illegal shops.
17:11We won't relent.
17:13We won't stop.
17:15We'll keep coming.
17:17And the baddies will know we'll keep coming.
17:21I want them to feel as if they're under attack
17:23from us, from every partner.
17:25We're in a really strong position.
17:27They're in a tailspin and they don't
17:29really know how to deal with it.
17:41The raids continue.
17:49Another shop is shut down.
17:55I think they have no scruples
17:57in terms of their behaviours, in terms of what they sell.
17:59Dangerous items, dangerous
18:01goods, dangerous jewellery.
18:07They just take advantage, they take advantage
18:09of the control and everything they possibly can
18:11to make as much money as they possibly can.
18:15The team is determined to find
18:17where the supply is coming from.
18:21The volumes of stuff that's being imported
18:23it's phenomenal.
18:25It's millions, billions of pounds
18:27worth of stock.
18:29That's not an insignificant organised crime group.
18:39With raids continuing
18:41on the illegal shops,
18:43intelligence has now led police to a container yard
18:45where they believe the gangs
18:47are storing the fake goods.
18:49It's time to cut off the supply.
18:53The scale of this is
18:55nothing like I've experienced.
18:59We've had a really strong pattern of community intelligence
19:01to say this specific
19:03container yard, the vast majority
19:05of the containers are criminal
19:07in some way.
19:09We can see quite clearly
19:11there is about 200 containers.
19:15This is a massive undertaking
19:17both in criminal but now in law enforcement terms.
19:21Early morning
19:23and hundreds of officers gather
19:25ready for action.
19:27How am I feeling?
19:29Nervous.
19:31Nothing on this scale has been
19:33done before by GMP.
19:35But certainly we've planned it
19:37we know how to go about this
19:39we've got the right tools and equipment
19:41the team are really well equipped and prepared
19:43yeah, just want to get going.
19:47Time to strike.
20:01Tactics to get us into the containers will be
20:03mixed.
20:05Get them to come with the keys and open them, great.
20:07Unfortunately somebody who's got a million pounds
20:09worth of counterfeit goods isn't going to show up
20:11and let me open this container.
20:13So we will cut the locks off.
20:17It's not long before they find
20:19what they've been looking for.
20:27As I open that container
20:29and it's stacked full of counterfeit goods
20:31I'm absolutely shocked
20:33by the scale, the volume
20:35the range.
20:37We've got electrical goods, jewellery, clothing
20:39footwear, but at the same time
20:41I'm feeling a little bit apprehensive
20:43because that's container number one
20:45I've now got 207 to go.
20:51And it's the same
20:53at the next container.
20:55Some are legitimate
20:57they are
20:59people's household goods, you know
21:01their business stuff, but still
21:03they need searching because we're finding
21:05that some have legitimate
21:07stuff at the front and then counterfeit goods behind.
21:11To be able to say, right we're going to take
21:13all this is really something
21:15because we're really going to be cutting off that
21:17supply chain at that point.
21:19With suspicion of
21:21possible counterfeit medicines being
21:23stored too, a search dog
21:25is brought in.
21:29A lot of viewers would say
21:31it's only a bit of counterfeiting, it doesn't
21:33really matter. Unfortunately
21:35the tactics that these groups employ
21:37are anything but victimless.
21:39They're really harmful to the communities.
21:45The people who are selling this don't care.
21:47It's about profit and that's as simple as it comes to.
21:49So that dangerous electronic
21:51that dangerous jewellery, that dangerous perfume
21:53that I'm giving to my loved ones
21:55because I think it's a bargain, is anything but.
21:59As the officers empty the containers
22:01one by one, it's clear
22:03this operation is on a scale
22:05never seen before in this country.
22:09We've estimated
22:11this will be
22:13in the hundreds of tonnes of
22:15counterfeit goods. The previous
22:17largest seizure was in the
22:19200 tonne mark.
22:21This will smash it out of the park.
22:23It's significant
22:25nationally on this
22:27sort of scale that hasn't been done before.
22:29When you think of
22:31the loss to organised crime
22:33this is a real smack in their face.
22:43The supply of counterfeit goods
22:45has been cut off
22:47and the shops
22:49have been shut down for good.
22:51We don't profess
22:53to stop counterfeiting in the UK
22:55but certainly that troubled
22:57area of Manchester, that
22:59moniker of counterfeit capital
23:01of Europe, gone.
23:03Will they allow Cheetham Hill to go back to what it was?
23:05Absolutely not.
23:09How do I feel?
23:13I couldn't be prouder
23:15I don't think.
23:21Coming up, the tension is
23:23high as a major operation
23:25to tackle drug dealing in South Wales
23:27continues.
23:29What could be behind that door?
23:31What could potentially be a danger to the officers
23:33going through the door?
23:35Freeze!
23:37You can feel the tension.
23:39And in Wolverhampton
23:41another stash of illegal
23:43cigarettes is discovered.
23:45There's more up here.
23:49There you go.
23:51Smuggled into the UK.
24:05South Wales
24:07and a major operation continues
24:09targeting organised criminals
24:11selling Class A drugs.
24:13Current focus,
24:15Leon Jean.
24:17He's an ex-footballer and he will try and run
24:19so if you get him, pin him down
24:21quick as and make sure he's cuffed and secured.
24:23The intel on Leon Jean
24:25is that he's a significant player
24:27within the drug supply of the
24:29South Wales area.
24:31In the command room it's tense
24:33waiting for the teams to get
24:35into position.
24:37In that case, OPCOM, we're all ready
24:39at the pause point, ready for your
24:41instruction.
24:43Yeah, that's noted. OPCOM's to team two
24:45and team four. You can move forward
24:47to your FAP and strike, strike, strike.
24:53The command room feeling is a lot of
24:55anxiety, a little bit of
24:57jelling and running, and you're just waiting
24:59on others to give you a bit of positive
25:01green light.
25:03Any entry team will have a lot of pressure
25:05to make sure they do it safely, quickly and efficiently
25:07but also to ensure that any evidence
25:09isn't lost during that entry.
25:39Reflash!
25:41Reflash!
25:43Reflash!
25:45Reflash!
25:47Reflash!
25:49Downstairs!
25:51Downstairs!
25:53Clear!
25:59Leon's soon
26:01found and immediately put in
26:03cuffs.
26:05Team two to OPCOM.
26:07Righto.
26:13That's Leon then.
26:15Brilliant.
26:17What's going on?
26:27He's been detained upstairs, he's in the
26:29rear bedroom.
26:31Conspiracy to supply class A drugs.
26:33Between
26:3521st January 2019
26:37and 14th January
26:392020.
26:41You do not have to say anything, but it may
26:43harm your defence if you do not mention
26:45one question, something which you later
26:47lie in court. Anything you do say
26:49may be given in evidence. Do you understand?
26:51No, I don't really. I don't know where you are.
26:57More than anything, it's a feeling
26:59of relief. It's a feeling of relief of all the hard work
27:01and hours and the intelligence
27:03and evidence we've built up is correct
27:05and is a massive relief.
27:21I think he'd be fully aware
27:23of what his involvement is
27:25within this operation and I think
27:27he'd be aware that he
27:29has got some tough questions to answer
27:31going forward.
27:33Once he's in custody,
27:35the second part of the hard work
27:37starts. Just because he's in custody
27:39doesn't mean it's game over.
27:41First phase successful.
27:43Now, attention
27:45turns to the next wave.
27:49And the focus is on
27:51two more key players in the
27:53organised crime group.
27:57Carl Flynn
27:59is a major player of
28:01distribution of drugs within the Merthyr area.
28:07This is an important meet for Carl Flynn
28:09because it will show his
28:11association with other criminals
28:13in and around the South Wales area,
28:15in particular Cardiff.
28:23Looking very casual
28:25is John Smith.
28:27In conversation with another person of interest,
28:29what we believe is about to take place
28:31is an exchange of a package
28:33which contains controlled
28:35substances. This obviously is important
28:37to the evidence building in
28:39the investigation against John Smith
28:41and show him as a courier.
28:43I think it's clear straight away
28:45from all members of the team, once we've
28:47gathered the intelligence, how big
28:49this is going to become.
28:51Another early
28:53morning and the Tarrian team
28:55is preparing to strike again.
28:57How far are we out?
28:59It's important that we try and
29:01capture all the other significant players as quickly
29:03as possible.
29:05We're just coming in to the
29:07estate now, mate. We should be
29:09well-timed now.
29:11In Merthyr Tydfil, the team is poised,
29:13ready for Carl Flynn.
29:19What could be behind that door?
29:21What could potentially be a danger to the officers
29:23going through a door?
29:25You can feel the tension. There's a lot of
29:27adrenaline.
29:31Police! Police! Police!
29:33Police! Police!
29:35Police! Police!
29:37Police!
29:39Police!
29:41Police!
29:43Hand behind your back!
29:45Hand behind your back!
29:47Hand behind your back!
29:49Relax. Relax.
29:51Relax your arms, mate.
29:55Is it Carl?
29:57Right, we'll pick you up, Carl.
29:59Take you downstairs.
30:01Carl Flynn's role is that he is
30:03purchasing the drugs and then he's
30:05responsible for supplying
30:07throughout the Merthyr area.
30:09Carl, we're going to lock these caps, all right,
30:11so they don't get tighter, OK?
30:13I come in first. Upstairs,
30:15I'm literally standing in the doorway.
30:17So, anyway.
30:19You're going to have a chance.
30:21Copy this.
30:23Nobody got hurt, nobody got injured.
30:25What am I going to do in a second? I'll take you downstairs.
30:27There's officers that will speak to you then, OK?
30:29They'll grab some bits and bobs.
30:31What's going through Flynn's mind
30:33is the unknown.
30:35He won't know
30:37what evidence and the quality
30:39of evidence we got,
30:41so I think he's probably hoping
30:43we haven't got much.
30:46Two in custody.
30:49But will they get their third man?
31:05Illicit cigarettes
31:07are not a victimless crime.
31:09They are sold
31:11at very cheap prices
31:13that are accessible
31:15to children and young people.
31:17They take away legitimate business
31:19from honest shopkeepers,
31:21so there's a lot of victims out there.
31:25In Wolverhampton,
31:27tobacco control officer
31:29Diane Slack is about to lead
31:31a raid on another shop
31:33that she believes is selling
31:35illicit cigarettes.
31:37When I'm going
31:39into a shop, I'm looking
31:41at how many staff are there.
31:43Have they got signs up to say
31:45that it's illegal to buy
31:47tobacco if you're under 18?
31:49And also you're thinking about the safety
31:51of your officers.
31:53If one of you comes with me,
31:55we'll get them to shut the shop down.
31:57When they arrive, there's only one
31:59person in the shop.
32:01Hello, sir.
32:03Bye, thank you.
32:05I'm Diane from Trading Standards.
32:07OK, and we're
32:09here today because we've had a complaint
32:11about illicit tobacco being sold from the shop.
32:13I don't know, it's not my shop.
32:15I just came in to buy something.
32:17OK, do you know where the owner of the shop is?
32:19I don't know.
32:21He's just gone somewhere. Maybe he's going to come back.
32:23Is he? Yeah.
32:25OK, well, we're going to have to shut the shop down.
32:27The man insists he's only
32:29a customer.
32:31It's not my shop and I don't...
32:33I've still got to take your details because you're here.
32:35OK.
32:37I wasn't here, I was in...
32:39Just wanted to buy a drink.
32:41He says he can contact the owner.
32:43If you want to, I'll find his number and call him.
32:45Have you got a telephone on you?
32:47Have you got a mobile phone on you?
32:49My phone, just before, yeah, I come here.
32:51I told him, can you put charger for me
32:53in my phone, yeah?
32:55You're behind there with the charger?
32:57Yeah, he charged for me, not me.
32:59You do have a phone and it's down there?
33:01Yeah, I put, I give to him, I say,
33:03can you charge for him?
33:05He's a customer, however,
33:07his phone, which is quite an expensive one,
33:09is behind the counter.
33:11I asked him why it's there.
33:13He said he's charging it up, but it's not attached to a charger.
33:15And also, his keys are behind the counter as well.
33:19And they're not the only things they discover.
33:21Let me just have a quick look.
33:27Behind here, we've got
33:29illicit tobacco,
33:31including cheap white cigarettes
33:33smuggled into the country.
33:35This one here, it's got foreign language
33:37health warnings, they're not allowed.
33:39Counterfeit Richmond is there.
33:41And also,
33:43that is
33:45oral tobacco, that's not allowed
33:47in this country.
33:49I was expecting to find them
33:51in a hidden area, but
33:53they are there for anybody to see
33:55if they go behind the counter.
33:57There's three different packets
33:59of cigarettes, they're all open.
34:01This sort of suggests to us that
34:03single cigarettes are being sold,
34:05possibly to children.
34:07Under UK law,
34:09it's only legal to sell cigarettes
34:11in sealed packets, containing
34:13a minimum of 20.
34:15Singles are usually sold at something
34:17like between 60 to 80 pence
34:19each, and this means it's affordable
34:21to children. They can come in
34:23and get a couple of fives, a bottle of pop,
34:25and before you know it, they're addicted
34:27to cigarettes, and then they're buying more cigarettes.
34:29And then ultimately, down the line,
34:31they get health issues.
34:33We've also found there is a notebook.
34:35It has tallies of different cigarettes
34:37in. This suggests to me that this is
34:39a tally of illegal tobacco that's
34:41brought into this country, and they're
34:43marking off how many they've sold.
34:45There's foreign-named
34:47cigarettes amongst them,
34:49and
34:51it shows
34:53that they're getting frequent,
34:55if not daily,
34:57use of these illicit cigarettes.
35:01Oh, we'll be taking that
35:03as well.
35:05Diane feels there could be more boxes
35:07stashed elsewhere,
35:09so they decide to bring in
35:11a specially-trained tobacco search dog
35:13to hunt around the building.
35:15OK, the dogs
35:17won't hurt you. They're very, very well-trained.
35:19OK?
35:21We use a tobacco
35:23dog because their sense of smell
35:25is extraordinary.
35:27They're so well-trained,
35:29they can go past a counter
35:31full of sausages and they're not deterred.
35:33They're looking for tobacco.
35:35And the dog soon sniffs out
35:37something.
35:39There's more up here!
35:41Excellent!
35:47I know straight away, this isn't as it
35:49should be.
35:51It says on duty-free,
35:53but their duty has not been paid on these goods.
35:59There you go.
36:03This is how they're smuggled into the UK.
36:05Like this.
36:15Good lads.
36:19It looks to me like they've just
36:21had a delivery.
36:23If you look at these cigarette packets here,
36:25you don't buy packets like that
36:27legally.
36:29We're looking at Polish Marlborough.
36:33I'm not saying it's counterfeit.
36:35They probably are genuine, but they're not made
36:37for this market, so
36:39I'm taking all this.
36:41The search has been a success,
36:43but Diane still needs to work out
36:45who owns the shop.
36:47I need to know who that man is.
36:49It's got nothing to do with the shop.
36:51But if that's the case, where's the owner?
36:53There should be somebody here.
36:55One of the issues
36:57I have is, it is difficult
36:59sometimes to find out who the owner of the shop
37:01is. All we can do is keep
37:03going in and hoping
37:05that one day we will get to the bottom of it.
37:13We have got, it's all
37:15sleeves of 200.
37:17And it comes to
37:198,200
37:21up here.
37:23Or 41
37:25sleeves of 200.
37:27Right, OK.
37:29With two
37:31successful raids, today's
37:33operation has led to thousands
37:35of illegal cigarettes being seized.
37:37I estimate
37:39that the duty that would have
37:41been paid on them
37:43would be 3,000, 4,000
37:45pounds. And
37:47obviously the VAT that hasn't been paid,
37:49that goes on top of that as well.
37:55Considerable amount
37:57of tobacco that we found there.
37:59And I'm quite surprised how
38:01much there was. And it should be in this
38:03country. That is very good
38:05enforcement.
38:11Police officers!
38:13Police officers!
38:15Police officers!
38:17Still to come, it's a major find
38:19for the Tarrian team in the
38:21fight against drugs.
38:23Five bags.
38:25Quantity of cash.
38:27Possibly in bundles of 1,000.
38:43In South Wales,
38:45officers from the elite task force
38:47Tarrian are making
38:49strikes against a suspected drugs
38:51gang. When you do
38:53multiple warrants with multiple
38:55suspects, there's always a lot of pressure to make
38:57sure the team is briefed properly,
38:59that the plan is done correctly, ensuring
39:01that we have a successful result at the end of the day.
39:05Their target this morning
39:07is John Smith.
39:09John Smith is a
39:11is John Smith.
39:17John Smith is
39:19an ex-amateur boxer.
39:21He is more of what we call the courier
39:23of the controlled substances
39:25rather than the actual supplier.
39:33Police officers!
39:35Police officers!
39:37Police officers!
39:39Police officers!
39:41Police officers!
39:53They have their man.
39:55He's safely in cuffs.
39:57John Smith is probably thinking
39:59he is not a significant member
40:01of the organised crime group, so when he actually
40:03sees the evidence, that's when he will start
40:05to realise that he
40:07is in serious bother.
40:13So once we've got
40:15our three suspects we're going for,
40:17then I think it's just a massive, again,
40:19huge relief.
40:21The second part of the investigation
40:23can actually now begin.
40:33With Smith off to
40:35custody, the search teams
40:37now begin their work.
40:39The search team is extremely important
40:41in any investigation
40:43because it's a job to find
40:45a little piece of a jigsaw which could
40:47really ensure we have a 100%
40:49case against the defendants.
40:51We're not just trying to find controlled substances
40:53or drugs at the premises, it's anything
40:55which indicates their involvement in the drug
40:57supply. That can be from lists,
40:59it could even be from anything
41:01they've researched on tablets and iPads.
41:03They soon
41:05find something of interest.
41:07The bag is located
41:09in this area.
41:11At John Smith's address
41:13we find
41:1510 kilos of amphetamine.
41:17One.
41:19Five bags.
41:21And signs of wealth
41:23which is hard for him
41:25to explain.
41:27At the bottom of the bed,
41:29Mike gave us
41:31one box
41:33containing
41:35quantity of cash
41:37possibly in bundles
41:39of a thousand.
41:41Finding anything at the address will always give
41:43the team a boost.
41:45Hours of hard work has paid off.
41:47The door
41:49which has been raided that morning
41:51has been a success not only for the arrest
41:53but also gathering further evidence
41:55against serious organised crime members.
41:57With three suspected
41:59OCG members in custody
42:01it's time for the Tarrion officers
42:03to interview them all
42:05and gather more vital evidence.
42:15Interviews are
42:17important. It allows them to give us
42:19alibis and it allows our investigation
42:21team to review any potential
42:23other leads but they're also
42:25allows us to show the evidence
42:27which then presented in
42:29court cases further down the line.
42:31But the suspects aren't forthcoming.
42:33Did you have anything to do with arranging this?
42:35No comment.
42:37Have you seen this vehicle before?
42:39No comment.
42:41Is it drugs?
42:43No comment.
42:45If you're part of this OCG, surely you know what's going on.
42:47No comment.
42:49Is it money?
42:51No comment.
42:53Is it this vehicle?
42:55No comment.
42:57I've got to ask questions. I'd appreciate if you waited.
42:59I'd appreciate you waiting until I finish the questions
43:01so you can hear what I'm saying, OK?
43:03I don't want to hear what you're saying.
43:05Is it something that is totally innocent?
43:07No comment.
43:09If it is, now is the time to tell us.
43:11No comment. Whatever you say to me anyway.
43:13I think sometimes they come across
43:15as nonchalant, as a bit of
43:17a defence because they know
43:19the level of trouble
43:21that they're in at a precise moment.
43:23I think the hard work has been done.
43:25The evidence has been gathered.
43:27The interview is just the next step.
43:29It's the overwhelming
43:31evidence that the teams
43:33on the ground, the days, hours,
43:35months into,
43:37which will give us a success.
43:39For their roles
43:41in the supply of drugs,
43:43Leon Jean is jailed for
43:45ten years, six months.
43:47Carl Flynn
43:49is sentenced to ten years.
43:53And John Smith
43:55is jailed for five years,
43:57seven months,
43:59alongside dozens of others in the
44:01OCG.
44:03I think this actually shows the size
44:05where 29 different defendants
44:07were jailed,
44:09which resulted in over 300 years
44:11of custodial sentence being passed down.
44:20We will never, ever give up
44:22the war against drugs.
44:24The battalion in Rockhew are committed
44:26to heading off the drug supply
44:28in South Wales.
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