Excessive worth paintings, designer items, valuable stones and money have been seized by detectives from the PSNI’s Organised Crime Department in a sequence of searches throughout NI.

Assisted by Neighbourhood Policing Crew and Tactical Help Group officers, 10 searches have been carried out at places in Crossmaglen, Lurgan, Larne, Glenarm and Carnlough as a part of an ongoing proactive policing operation concentrating on organised crime gangs concerned within the provide of medication.

Detective Inspector Conor Sweeney stated: “Together with roughly £40,000 and 25,000 euro and excessive worth gadgets, these searches – which have been carried out on Wednesday, October 12 and Thursday, October 13 – additionally resulted within the seizure of watches, weaponry together with machetes, over 100 rounds of illegally held ammunition, an imitation firearm and suspected hashish.

“A hashish ‘develop home’ was additionally found at one of many places.

“We stay dedicated to finding and seizing unlawful medicine to take such harmful substances off the streets.

“We’ll proceed to work with native communities and collectively we’ll hold combating those that prey on probably the most susceptible in these communities.

“We depend on the group to assist us and can act on any data you may present us, so I’d ask anybody with details about any criminality to contact police on 101 or anonymously by the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111, which supplies individuals the ability to talk up and cease crime.”