HEROIN SEIZURES BY POLICE RISE 400%

Heroin seizures by Scotland's second largest police force have risen
by a staggering 400% in the last year, figures revealed yesterday.

Lothian and Borders Police yesterday attributed the rise to a
combination of a dramatic increase in the availability of the drug on
the streets and the force's 16-month anti-drugs crackdown, Operation
Foil, which has targeted dealers in a bid to prevent a repeat of the
early 1980s when use of the drug was widespread.

Officers seized heroin worth nearly UKP170,000 between April, 1999,
and March this year, compared with only UKP32,000 for 1998/99. The
number of hauls increased less dramatically, rising from 183 to 225.

Deputy Chief Constable Tom Wood said the annual figures demonstrated
that the force was continuing the fight against heroin and not
involved in one-off high profile initiatives. "The increase can be
attributed to a mixture of an increase in the availability of heroin
and our intelligence-led operation to target dealers.

"When Operation Foil was launched at Christmas, 1998, many criminals
thought it was a one-off and that a few months down the line we would
have forgotten about them, but they were wrong.

"The soaring success of this ongoing operation shows that we mean
business and the fight against drugs is alive and well. Tackling drugs
is one of our main force goals and we will not let up in our fight
against those who prey on the vulnerable in our society."

In the latest three-week stage of Operation Foil, 46 people were
arrested and drugs worth UKP44,526 were recovered, including heroin,
amphetamines, ecstasy, and cannabis. A total of 65 premises were
searched by officers.

Reflecting on the latest figures, the police chief said: "The war
against drugs is not one that the police can tackle single-handedly.
We need the support of the public and the other agencies to defeat the
dealers.

"The latest arrests are reflected in this as intelligence gathered
from the previous operations and information from the public has
played a big part in these figures so they can share the credit for
these arrests. They demonstrate that together we can make a
difference."