Displaying items by tag: drug trade

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has sent texts to nearly two thousand individuals whose phone numbers were discovered during drug raids. These texts contain advice on substance misuse and aim to address the growing demand for illicit drugs in Northern Ireland. Drug seizures and drug-related arrests have both increased by 10% this year. The PSNI's recent focus has been on the supply of Class A and Class B drugs through social media apps and groups. This trend has transformed the drugs market in Northern Ireland over the past few years. Paramilitary groups are working closely with organised crime groups to import and distribute drugs: about sixty criminal gangs currently operate in the region. The PSNI is working with national and international law enforcement partners to target suppliers and supply lines. It is also collaborating with Border Force to prevent drug smuggling through Northern Ireland's ports.

Journalist Mobeen Azhar went to Huddersfield to investigate gun crime. His enquiry, lasting almost two years, found links between Huddersfield and national and international drugs trading, mainly by British Pakistanis. Each incident he saw on videotape seemed to follow the same pattern - streets cordoned off, gunshots, blood, and masked men speeding off. Witnesses were afraid to talk for fear of retribution. The words ‘young Pakistani’ kept coming up, with suggestions of a drug turf war. ‘It’s getting out of control - you can’t pop down to the shop without a bulletproof vest’, one woman said. In 20 months, 95+ incidents involving firearms related to the drugs trade occurred in one Huddersfield district alone. People justified selling drugs because ‘the customers aren’t Muslim, so you don’t have to respect them’. One in every 100 people in Yorkshire and Humber has used crack cocaine and other opiates.