TODAY'S raids which have seen the arrest of 13 alleged dealers in Ipswich will be welcomed by everyone concerned about the growing menace of drugs in this town.
TODAY'S raids which have seen the arrest of 13 alleged dealers in Ipswich will be welcomed by everyone concerned about the growing menace of drugs in this town.
The dangers of drugs have been known for many years and today's raids were the latest crackdown on dealers based outside the area who target Ipswich as a “soft target.”
That perception of the town must change - and is changing after the serious problems that drugs can cause were highlighted during last winter's appalling events in the red light area.
Operation Academy is aimed specifically at dealers from outside the town who have been targeting Ipswich and most of those arrested today are believed to live in other parts of the country.
Hopefully these raids will not only take a significant number of dealers out of the picture so far as Ipswich is concerned, but they will also send a strong message to those who may have considered targeting Ipswich for their evil trade.
They will now know that the police in Suffolk are targeting dealers and that anyone who comes here to set up illegal drugs deals is putting their liberty at serious risk.
Illegal drugs ruin lives. Drugs users often find themselves lured into petty crime or prostitution to fund their habit.
Often they are forced into dealing themselves in order to get a discount on their next fix. If today's raids have helped break that vicious circle for a time, Ipswich will be the better for it.
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