Cleveland Police destroy £1m worth of drugs taken from dealers by dropping it into burning furnace

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Ian McIntyre

Pictures: Cleveland Police burn £1m of drugs in incinerator

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Drugs worth £1m have gone up in smoke in a bonfire with a difference.

The massive haul of cannabis plants, amphetamine, cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin has been seized by Cleveland Police since Janaury.

And officers today destroyed the huge haul by dropping it into a burning furnace.

The narcotics had been taken from criminals in raids across Teesside by the Community Drug Enforcement Team (CDET).

Since the team was launched in November last year, more than 80 offenders have been brought to justice and over one hundred suspects are on bail as part of live investigations.

The team has seized drugs with a street value of around £1.5m since January this year.

Now, drug detectives have highlighted their efforts by burning £1m pounds worth of drugs in a “mass burn” at a Teesside incinerator.

Detective Inspector Christian Ellis said: “By seizing these drugs we have stopped £1m going into the pockets of criminals, but destroyed in a furnace as part of our £1m drugs drop.”

“We want to say a huge thank you to the public for reporting their suspicions as many of our investigations start by a concerned community member reporting their fears to us.

“I would urge people to keep reporting to us, we take the supply of drugs and associated antisocial behaviour extremely seriously and will act on information that comes in.”

Police and Crime Commissioner Barry Coppinger said: “This team has made a real impact in such a short space of time by removing these drugs from the streets.”

One of the CDET’s most notable cases was that of Dun Ngoc Nguyen, 33, from Vietnam who was jailed for two years and four months for the cultivation of cannabis worth £144,450.

Andrew Donaldson, 39, from Redcar was also investigated by the team and he was jailed for three years for possession with intent to supply heroin.

Anyone who sees drugs activity in their area is asked to contact the Cleveland Community Drug Enforcement Team on 0800 0929702 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.