Hampshire police seize 16 vehicles and make 20 arrests as Operation Pandilla hailed as a success
Arrests involved the supply of Class A drugs and possessing offensive weapons in public.
More than a dozen vehicles have been seized and 20 people arrested by cross-border operation.
Operation Pandilla saw ten police forces, including Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, Surrey Police and the Metropolitan Police, co-ordinate using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) to target criminals who go between county boundaries to commit offences.
In Hampshire, officers made 20 arrests, stopped 96 vehicles and seized 16 of them, and made 15 drugs seizures, with incidents taking place across the Solent.
Inspector Nikki Hopkins, from the northern neighbourhood enforcement team, said: “This Operation Pandilla has been another success, as we have disrupted criminal activity across force boundaries and made a number of arrests.
“Sharing intelligence with other forces means we can better tackle high harm offenders, including those involved in drug supply.
“We will continue to look at all opportunities and tactics available to us to disrupt offenders and bring criminals to justice.”
On Wednesday, April 22, officers in an unmarked located a vehicle with four men inside in Widley Walk, by Portsdown Hill, Portsmouth. Cannabis, cannabis vapes and cash were found in the vehicle. Further items were found during related address searches, including suspected Class A drugs and weapons, such as a knuckle duster.
A 20-year-old man from Waterlooville, a 19-year-old man from Havant, a 19-year-old man from Waterlooville and an 18-year-old man from Havant were arrested and are currently on police bail pending further enquiries.
In another incident, officers stopped a car on the A3(M) northbound near Petersfield at around 5.15pm on Tuesday, April 21. Three phones were found in the car, showing suspected marketing messages for drugs.
A 26-year-old man from Kent and a 25-year-old woman from Fareham were arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of a Class A drug. They have since been released on police bail with conditions, pending further enquiries.