Police arrested nearly 70 drug dealers and rescued a 15-year-old trafficking victim in a huge crackdown on Cardiff's Class A drug trade.
The eight-month covert operation carried out from August 2019 to March 2020 caught dealers selling crack cocaine, heroin and ketamine on the streets.
It covered an extensive sweep of the city, with officers deployed to Adamsdown, Butetown, Cathays, Canton, Grangetown, Splott and the city centre.
As a result, 69 dealers were arrested in July 2020, of which 64 have been charged and 44 are already serving custodial sentences amounting to more than 117 years.
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In addition to the arrests, undercover officers also dismantled two county lines from Birmingham and London, and seized 300 drug deals, £53,000 in cash, 125 mobile phones and a range of weapons.
South Wales Police said that major findings include £14,000 in cash at a drug dealer's home in Roath, and 250g of crack cocaine in a flat in Riverside.
In addition to this, a high-risk missing 15-year-old girl was found at an address in Riverside having been trafficked down from London. She was taken home safe and well to her parents.
Known as Operation Talon, the investigation was launched in response to residents' concerns about "visible drug dealing on a daily basis".
Police say feedback on the action has been "fantastic", according to South Wales Police, with one resident commenting that Butetown is now "unrecognisable".
The trafficking victim was a high-risk missing 15-year-old girl, who was found at an address in Riverside, having being trafficked from London.
She was returned home "safe and well" to her parents.
Detective Inspector Grant Wilson, who led the operation, said: “Operation Talon was launched as a direct response to concerns raised by the community about visible drug dealing on a daily basis which was effecting [sic] their quality of life.
“Undercover officers were deployed in areas such as the city centre, Butetown and Grangetown, where they found an open market for drug dealing.
“The feedback from the local community following the operation has been fantastic. One member of the public approached a PCSO in the street to say that “Butetown is unrecognisable.
“We are not naïve, we know that drug dealing is still taking place, but this operation has made a significant impact on that blatant dealing that communities were describing to us.”
He added: “The results are testament to the dedication of every single officer involved in Operation Talon but does not end there.
"The next stage of Operation Talon is making sure procedures are in place for when these individuals come out of prison.
“We will make it as difficult as possible for them to re-establish themselves by working with the Probation Service and Housing Providers.
“This is not a one-off – identifying, disrupting and arresting drug dealers who operate in our local communities remains a daily priority for us.”
If you have any information that could aid Operation Talon, you can contact SWP via their website, in a private message on Facebook or Twitter, in an email to SWP101@south-wales.police.uk or by phoning 1010. You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously via https://orlo.uk/UDRw6 or 0800 555 111.
You can also contact free and confidential drugs helpline Dan 24/7, which is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, via freephone 0808 808 2234 or by texting DAN to 81066.
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