Suspected drugs and jewellery seized by the Exmouth Neighbourhood Police Team

The Exmouth Neighbourhood Police Team are working hard to keep residents and visitors safe as the school holidays approach and they look ahead to the busy Easter Bank Holiday weekend.

The team were recently alerted to someone who was believed to be attempting to post a suspicious parcel at a local post office.

Following further investigation an amount of what is believed to be cultivating cannabis was found at a residential address in Exmouth along with more than £20,000 worth of what is believed to be cannabis stored and packed in a state ready for posting across the UK.

In addition to the suspected drugs a range of expensive watches were also seized from the same flat and investigations are ongoing into these items.

Police arrested a man and a woman on suspicion of cultivating an illegal substance and they remain on bail pending further enquiries.

Exmouth Sector Inspector Grant Leitch explained: “A review of drugs and cash seizures by the Exmouth and Ottery Neighbourhood Team has confirmed, that between November 2022 and August 2023, they seized a collective value of drugs and cash totalling more than £350,000.

“That level of seizure was the result of around 18 police investigations and was down to the exemplary work of the Neighbourhood Team, led by Sergeant Richard Stonecliffe. They delivered this level of heightened policing whilst also fulfilling their usual neighbourhood role to deal with other incidents and engage with the local community - and their hard work continues.”

Inspector Grant Leitch added: “Exmouth and the surrounding area is a very busy place and we want the local community to know we have listened to their concerns and ideas.

“We have significantly increased our input and focus on certain areas such as Cranbrook which has an increasing population base, and consequently produces more requests from local people to the police and council.

“In the future we have officers visiting both local schools in Cranbrook to engage with the pupils and police are conducting bespoke liaison with business owners in the area to explore additional funding to prevent crime. We have also started a series of police surgeries - the first one was held on 7 March outside the Cranbrook Education Campus, and another is due to take place on 19 April outside Cranbrook Education Campus (EX5 7EE) between 3pm and 3.30pm.

“The events mean officers can give advice to the public on a range of issues such as reporting incidents and parking and we also liaise with colleagues at British Transport Police, taking into account local crime patterns.”

Police teams across Devon & Cornwall, working with colleagues in police forces across the South West, recently took part in Operation Scorpion. This initiative is a regular crack down on drug dealing and County Lines in the region. During this year’s operation Devon & Cornwall Police seized drugs with a monetary value of £370,000, along with £20,000 in cash, tobacco and vapes with a monetary value of £500,000 and 73 people were safeguarded. Police also made 28 arrests, seized ten weapons and disrupted County Lines drugs routes.

If you have information about drug dealing or other crimes in your community please contact Devon & Cornwall Police via the Force website www.devon-cornwall.police.uk

If you wish to stay anonymous please contact independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or via www.crimestoppers-uk.org

To get regular updates regarding the Exmouth Neighbourhood Police Team and local events please follow ‘Exmouth Police’ on Facebook and to receive email or text incidents updates, appeals and crime prevention advice tailored to your needs please subscribe to Devon and Cornwall Alert Home Page - Devon and Cornwall Alert