Operation Vanguard targets criminals across Merseyside

Operation Vanguard targets criminals across Merseyside

Today (Thursday, 23 July) more than 300 Merseyside Police officers and staff are involved in the third Operation Vanguard - the biggest yet with warrants and extensive police activity spanning every borough of Merseyside.

Officers are in Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, St Helens and Knowsley where they have proactively targeted people suspected of causing harm to those communities due to their various criminal activity.

Residents will see officers including targeted teams, Matrix, County Lines specialists, the Regional Organised Crime Unit, Roads Policing, CID, mounted and dogs teams, with the support of the North West Underwater Search team, leave no stone unturned in this relentless offensive against criminals.

Operation Vanguard reinforces Chief Constable Rob Carden's commitment to show contempt for criminality. In relentlessly targeting criminals who bring fear and harm to our communities, Op Vanguard also demonstrates compassion for victims and decent law-abiding people, who suffer as a result of criminals' actions.

The operation supports the day-to-day activity our officers carry out 365 days a year to keep our communities safe. Criminality has a hugely negative impact on families and the most vulnerable in our communities and today we are targeting those involved in serious organised crime (drug crime and serious violence), child sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, County Lines, modern day slavery, burglary, robbery, drug and drink driving, and a whole host of other offences.

Police have been actively targeting those driving serious and organised criminality in these areas as part of EVOLVE. Work under the EVOLVE initiative has focussed on disrupting that serious and organised crime; making arrests and seizing drugs, weapons, illicit cash and assets; engaging the community, especially young people and supporting broader area-wide crime reduction and community confidence building. The combination of enforcement, safeguarding and engagement with partner agencies reflects a sustained and multi-faceted approach to improving safety and local quality of life rather than isolated short-term activity.

This morning Police have so far executed 28 warrants and throughout the day there will be further activity including:

• Land searches
• Underwater searches
• Roadside operations by the Roads Policing Team
• Safeguarding of vulnerable people being exploited and used by heartless and callous criminals
• Patrols by officers from our Mounted and Dogs teams
• Op Gears patrols targeting the illegal use of electric bikes, e-scooters, and off-road motorcycles
• Targeting of suspects wanted for numerous offences including those involved in domestic abuse, serious violence, fraud, neighbourhood crime and drug related offending amongst other criminality

In March, the force introduced a significant restructure designed to strengthen local accountability and improve the service delivered to communities across the region. Liverpool, Knowsley/St Helens, Sefton and Wirral have their own Basic Command Units (BCUs), a local area-based command team bringing more responsive local policing for communities. Each is carrying out its own targeted activity today. As part of the restructure, an additional 80 officers were put into response policing, 60 additional officers into neighbourhood policing and the retention of 200 community support officers.

Chief Constable Rob Carden said: "This is the third Operation Vanguard in Merseyside. While the first focused on Knowsley and the second was in Liverpool, today we have deployed targeted operations to all of our Basic Command Units in Wirral, Sefton, St Helens/Knowsley and Liverpool.

"It is an operation involving a significant number of officers deploying a vast range of tactics and should leave criminals in absolutely no doubt that this force has complete contempt for criminality.

"If you are involved in crime, you are not welcome here and the scale of today's activity demonstrates very clearly the strength of our resolve to rid all of our communities of the harm offenders bring.

"If you are dealing drugs, storing and using weapons, or assaulting or abusing vulnerable people, you have nowhere to hide in Merseyside.

"This morning 28 warrants have so far been carried out and throughout the today our Roads Policing teams will be stopping cars suspected of being used in criminality and taking action against drink and drug drivers and those who use our roads for criminal activity.

"A number of searches will be carried out including by the North West Underwater Search Team in those places criminals are suspected of discarding items linked to their offending.

"Our officers are also identifying vulnerable people who have been exploited by criminals and offering them support and signposting to other agencies who can help them.

"Our work will continue into the evening, supported by colleagues from the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit, local authorities and other partners. Mobile police stations will be in place and I would encourage anyone with questions, concerns or information to speak to our officers.

"Today's activity shows our complete and utter contempt for anyone involved in criminality right across Merseyside.

"We all have a vested interest in making sure the county we love is a safe place to live, work and visit. Today's positive enforcement action together with the support and compassion we can offer victims show very clearly whose side we are on.

"Our message to criminals is very clear - we don't want you in our communities and we will pursue you relentlessly."

If you have any information which could help us to prevent criminality in your area, let Police know so they can take action and ensure our communities can enjoy their local areas safely.

You can do this by calling 101, or contacting us on social media @MerPolCC. You can also report information via our website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/

Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously In an emergency always call 999.