VIDEO Four people have today been issued with warnings for drugs offences after a police crackdown at Ipswich train station. A further person has been cautioned and one bailed, after they were arrested following spot checks on passengers at the station yesterday.

FOUR people have today been issued with warnings for drugs offences after a police crackdown at Ipswich train station.

A further person has been cautioned and one bailed, after they were arrested following spot checks on passengers at the station yesterday.

A total of 15 plain clothed and uniformed police officers from the British Transport Police with sniffer dogs were at the station yesterday at around 8pm.

Detective Inspector, David Aiton, from the British Transport Police, was in charge of the operation said: “It's a pre-planned British Transport Police operation designed to reassure the public and to disrupt, deter and detect drug related criminality - our work is based on intelligence but we also use trained drugs dogs here to carry out spot checks on passengers.”

It follows a similar operation in October at the station when nine people were arrested.

Det Insp Aiton, said: “From our point of view it's been an effective and successful initiative.

“There is nothing to suggest that there is more of a drugs problem at Ipswich than at other railway stations but you do get the people travelling from London and historical intelligence does suggest that there has been trafficking of drugs in the past.

“However tonight has been very encouraging and our recent initiatives like this have had a significant impact in terms of disrupting activity.”

An onlooker said she found the high police presence unnerving and was relieved to hear there wasn't a bomb at the station.

She said: “I didn't know what to think when I got off the train and the place was swarming with police, I was worried there was a bomb or something serious like that.”

Did you see the activity yesterday? Do you think there's a problem with drug related crime in Ipswich?

Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk.