Ashton man charged amid County Lines intensification

Ryan Cook, 33, of Hope Street, was charged following a pursuit last Friday, October 13.

He has been charged with possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, namely cocaine and heroin, and possession with intent to supply cannabis.

Officers recovered a quantity of drugs during the search of a property and car.

This comes after GMP took part in a national week of intensification last week, 9 – 15 October, aimed at disrupting and dismantling County Lines.

County Lines are the use of dedicated phone lines to supply drugs from urban areas out to smaller towns across the country. This does however also occur from one area to another within the same city. 

A total of 32 warrants took place, resulting in 39 arrests across Greater Manchester, with over £90,000 in cash and drugs with a street value of over £160,000 seized. These included heroin, crack, cocaine, cannabis, pills, and ketamine. 

Mobile phones, and multiple vehicles were confiscated along with a taxi and an e-bike. A Rolex watch, and other high value clothing were also recovered.

With County Lines drug operations often also comes serious violence, whether that be aimed inside the groups themselves, or towards rival gangs.

As part of this intensification period officers have discovered and seized three firearms, hunting knives, machetes, knuckle dusters, extendable batons, swords, axes, and BB guns.

These seizures are incredibly important as they demonstrate GMP’s unwavering commitment to tackling serious violence and preventing harm to the community.

Another element to the week of intensification was ensuring those identified as being exploited into County Lines, whether that be children or vulnerable adults, were engaged with and safeguarded, with the aim of helping them through the process of getting out of their current situation. 

In total 17 adults and 42 children were referred into safeguarding, with 20 cuckooed addresses also visited. 

Cuckooing is the term used for when criminals exploit vulnerable people into letting them store drugs or other items linked to criminality within their property.

The week also saw additional training delivered to officers and partners, proactive patrols took place in hotspot areas, knife arches were put up in key locations, taxi licensing checks carried out, street surgeries with communities held, and school inputs delivered alongside partners. 

Tackling County Lines effectively is not possible only through arresting people; increased awareness of signs to spot, preventative and divertive measures, and community engagement are important aspects of the problem-solving approach GMP and Programme Challenger partners in Greater Manchester take every day, not just during national intensification weeks.

If you believe you or someone you know may be a victim of exploitation further information or support can be provided by the organisations below:

Catch 22 is a specialist support and rescue service for young people and their families who are criminally exploited through county lines.

Safecall offers a safe space for people affected by exploitation to talk about their experiences in confidence and can also provide reassurance, support and help formulate a plan via their dedicated service.

Young people can contact Crimestopper's via Fearless to access non-judgemental information and advice.

The National Crime Agency County Lines website explains more about county lines and indicators of exploitation in your area.

The Safeguarding Network have helpful tips for understanding indicators of exploitation and what may make a young person more vulnerable to being exploited.

If drug activity is taking place in your community, please contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or by calling GMP on 101.