A Grantham hotel has been raised by Lincolnshire Police as they searched for Class A drugs in the town.

Lincolnshire Police reported today that three warrants were carried at simultaneously at the 4-star Urban Hotel on Swingbridge Road, plus properties in Tamar Court and Bridge End Road.

The raids took place at the end of January.

To raise awareness of how the police respond to information that drug dealing or county lines activity could be taking place, Lincolnshire Police has released an insight into the raids.

The warrants were led by response officers – police officers you could expect to see rapidly responding to violence, traffic collisions and domestic incidents – with support from officers from the local Neighbourhood Policing Team, firearms officers, a Tactical Support Team and Grantham CID.

Four men aged between 32 and 50 were arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, and two women aged 29 and 51 were arrested on suspicion of the same offence.

A man aged 41 was arrested on suspicion of possessing a Class B drug.

Drugs, paraphernalia, cash, mobile phones and weapons including knives and a knuckleduster were seized. Property was also recovered by officers which may have been stolen including power tools.

Those arrested have been released under investigation while officers continue with their inquiries.

Sergeant Gemma Woolford from the Grantham response team said: "Response officers are incredibly busy and you will have seen their flashing blue lights as they rush from one incident to the next.

"We wanted to give our response officers the experience of leading warrants, which they wouldn't usually do, as it undoubtedly gives them new skills which they can use to protect residents in their day-to-day job.

"I am exceptionally proud of the efforts of my team and they led these warrants while balancing the need to respond to urgent incidents, and they were even contacting victims of other crimes during their lunch breaks.

"With any investigation into drugs or county lines, we use the vast array of expertise and knowledge within policing to help improve communities, and we will continue to do our very best for Grantham."

County lines activity is drug dealing which typically sees people from larger cities looking to deal drugs in smaller parts of the country. They visit, setup a drug dealing network and run it from elsewhere.

County lines dealers look to exploit and abuse the most vulnerable people in our communities.

The police work tirelessly with local residents and partner agencies to quickly take action and disrupt county lines.

If you have information about this activity or drug dealing, please call 101. If you wish to remain anonymous, make a report to CrimeStoppers online or call 0800 555 111.

Reference: Incident 53 of 29/1/21