Fifteen arrests made during operation aimed at locating foreign national offenders

Fifteen arrests were made following an operation aimed at locating foreign national offenders wanted by police and other organisations.

Op Old was carried out last week and saw various departments from across the force work alongside partner agencies aiming to disrupt and target criminals from other countries currently living in Leicester.

The operation, which has also seen several charges being made including for robbery and drugs offences, follows on from the success of a similar operation - Operation Once - which was carried out last year.

The purpose of the operations is to bring those involved in crime both in the UK and overseas to justice and to protect vulnerable people who are at risk of harm from criminal activity.

Much of the activity last week was focussed on traffic stops with a lot of the activity taking place in the area of Narborough Road in Leicester.

Arrests and charges made last week are:

• A 40-year-old Latvian national was arrested and subsequently charged with robbery of a vehicle. He has been remanded into custody.
• A 29-year-old man was stopped and arrested on suspicion of drugs offences. He was subsequently charged with possession of cannabis and handling stolen goods and has been remanded into custody.
• Four Romanian nationals – two men and two women – were arrested in connection with more than 100 cannabis plants and a significant quantity of cash being recovered from an address in Oadby. One of the men, aged 44, has been charged with production of cannabis. The man, who was also wanted on a European Arrest Warrant for offences in Romania, has been remanded into custody. The other three people arrested have been released under investigation.
• Two Albanian nationals were stopped and arrested on suspicion of drugs supply offences. Both have since been released under investigation.
• Four Vietnamese nationals were also arrested for drugs supply offences. They have also since been released under investigation.
• An Albanian national was arrested for possession of criminal property following cash in the region of £30,000 being found at an address. He has been released under investigation.
• Two other people arrested have been dealt with by partner agencies. This is in relation to immigration matters.
• A total of 18 vehicles have also been seized during the operation in connection with a number of different offences.

Detective Inspector Dan Granger said: “Following a similar operation last year, Op Old again saw a proactive approach taken by the force alongside partner agencies, resulting in a number of significant arrests and charges being made.

“This work is carried out through a combination of targeted patrols and as a result of information being collated and passed onto us in relation to criminals who are wanted in other countries and who are living in Leicester.

“This allows us to not only trace and arrest individuals but also to safeguard vulnerable people in our communities who are at risk of harm from the crimes being committed.

“As a force, we continue to take this proactive and joined-up approach to tackle serious and organised crime affecting our communities and to bring those responsible for crime to justice.”