Praise for 'significant' impact of operation targeting city's drug dealers which resulted in 21 Doncaster drug dealers being jailed for a total of 57 years

That is the verdict of Doncaster Inspector Adrian Luscombe who has praised the effect of an intensive and meticulously planned 18-month operation targeting the city's drug dealers.

Insp Luscombe oversees the Doncaster South Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) which covers Mexborough, Conisborough, Edlington and other surrounding areas.

In the past, villages and towns on the South patch have seen the damaging and devastating effects of the involvement of organised crime groups (OCGs), with the supply of drugs fuelling the activities of these gangs who wreak havoc on local communities.

This latest operation has resulted in 21 Doncaster drug dealers being jailed for a total of 57 years with major drug lines disrupted and Insp Luscombe says the impact of this scheme cannot be underestimated.

"The operation has been a huge success and I cannot stress enough the impact it has had in helping to dismantle drugs lines across the city and particularly in Doncaster South NPT," Insp Luscombe said.

"If I could have written a list of people I'd want removing from the area, I'd say that almost all of the key ones are gone, going or have had their operations heavily disrupted thanks to months of hard work, planning and intelligence gathering.

"Next month, I'll have been doing this job for 20 years and in that time, I've never been involved in a police operation that's had a more significant impact than this one - it's been massive.

"It was evident that drugs were funding the activities of OCGs in the area and by wiping out their suppliers, it creates a vacuum which we are now in a position to consolidate."

Drug dealers from the South area who have been locked up as part of the operation include Alexander Olas, of Harrogate Drive, James Sheerin, of Stone Riding, and Henry Hodgson, of Church Street, among several others.

Insp Luscombe says previous voids or vacuums left by members of OCGs being imprisoned or disappearing from the area have been filled quickly, but thanks to a new Clear, Hold and Build (CHB) Strategy, they are now in a position to prevent this from happening.

"In the past, certain key OCG members have been jailed or gone away which has created a void that has soon been filled.

"Now, with this strategy in place we're moving from a successful Clear phase to a Hold process which enables us to build on the gains we've made and start doing some preventative work so people are less vulnerability to OCG involvement.

"It has created a vital breathing space for us to work and the longer we go without OCG involvement in these areas, the more time it gives us to build for the future."

Visiting schools in the area to ensure the lure of organised crime doesn't become part of children's future is one of the tasks officers in the area will now carry out to build a more prosperous future for people living in those communities.

Insp Luscombe has admitted that while much of the drug dealing may not have been seen in public, its consequences will have been felt by those living in the south of the city and his team is determined to build on this operation to stop this from happening again.

He said: "The community at large might not have been so aware of the harm these individuals were causing but drugs supply means there are drug users who have to fund a habit.

"To do this, they branch out into acquisitive crimes like burglaries, robberies and thefts. We know these groups recruit young people who are being groomed into supplying and this might not be happening publicly in the streets, but we know it has been occurring.

"We know the supply of drugs has been linked to firearms offences and stabbings because it's between these different groups and it's difficult to take action because victims don't want to talk.

"A lot of people won't have been aware that this criminality has been happening because it goes on behind closed doors, but we know that it has been and others will have seen the damaging side effects and the crime it funds.

"I hope residents living in the southern areas of the city can feel safer knowing these drug dealers are now behind bars and together we can work to build safer and thriving communities for our future generations."

Last week, the police listed the name of every single one of the 21 Doncaster people who have been jailed for supplying Class A drugs in the city.

They have put behind bars for a combined total of over half a century - but Doncaster Superintendent Pete Thorp says this is just the start of what this operation hopes to attain, with more convictions and jail terms expected in order to build on what has already been achieved.

"We are confident of bringing even more drug dealers to justice in the coming weeks and months as we build on the momentum this operation has given us," Supt Thorp said.

"This operation has given us a huge platform to build on and the message to anyone selling drugs in this city is that we are onto you. We are cracking down on drugs and we will not allow your crimes to continue."

If you are worried about drug-related crime in your area, or if you think someone may be a victim of drug exploitation, please call 101 or 999 in an emergency.

You can also get in touch via the online portal: www.southyorks.police.uk/contact-us/report-something/.

You can also report information anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or by visiting the Crimestoppers website.