Heroin, cocaine, cannabis and machete with 15inch blade seized by Sheffield police in crime crackdown

Four people have been charged and large quantities of Class A drugs, along with cannabis worth £200,000, have been seized, following raids carried out in Sheffield.

A South Yorkshire Police spokesperson said five warrants were executed in the Manor area of the city on Wednesday last week (April 24), resulting in officers making five arrests, seizing large quantities of class A drugs (heroin and cocaine), as well as cash and jewellery.

The warrants were part of a police week of action, running between Friday, April 19 and Saturday, April 27, 2024, in a bid to take criminals and illegals drugs off Sheffield’s streets.

“Serious violence is prevalent where organised crime groups operate, making the lives of law-abiding people in the community a misery,” a South Yorkshire Police spokesperson said.

They added: “Working with partner agencies, our officers worked to engage with communities, protect vulnerable people, and remove weapons from the streets, ultimately making our streets a safer place for us all to enjoy.

“It’s not just drugs that are a concern for our officers. Weapons are often present where drugs are prepared and sold. Our officers took part in weapons sweeps in areas where they suspected knives and firearms may have been discarded.”

A search in Broomhall uncovered a machete with a 15-inch blade which was discovered in a bush. The officer who found the deadly weapon believed it had been discarded in such a way that suggested the owner had planned to return for it at a later date.

Following the raids, Keelon Cartledge, aged 22, Reece Young, also aged 22, and 23-year-old Christian Kennedy were all charged with two counts of conspiracy to supply class A drugs. Lewis Showell, 26, was charged with the same in addition to possession of criminal property.

The four men were remanded in custody to attend Sheffield Magistrates’ Court on April 26, 2024, where they were remanded into custody and are awaiting trial. A fifth man was arrested during the warrants but later bailed.

Another two separate warrants were carried out on the same day at Abbey Lane, where 148 cannabis plants were found, and Musgrave Road, where a further 89 plants were seized. In total, the plants had a potential street value of over £200,000.

Egis Rika, aged 19, was charged with production of a class B drug and was remanded in custody following an appearance at Sheffield Magistrates' Court on Thursday, April 25, 2024.

Other police activity carried out across the week included stop and searches at known drug dealing hotspots throughout the city. Police Dog Toby helped officers by indicating when he caught a scent of a drug. Officers conducted 24 searches in this way, finding drugs on eight occasions.

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Analysis of drugs testing on arrest shows a clear link between serious violence and drugs in the night-time economy, according to South Yorkshire Police.

The force said action with a police dog team enables officers to target those individuals coming into Sheffield city centre intent on taking drugs which can and often will make them violent.

Three suspects were summonsed to court in connection to offences including drugs possession, and one man was arrested on suspicion of possession of a class B drug with intent to supply.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Oughton, who is the force lead for drugs and led the week of heightened activity, said: “Drugs are a leading cause of serious violence in South Yorkshire, with much of the sale of illegal drugs in the region carried out by organised crime groups. The successful warrants and seizures executed last week represent a major blow to these criminal groups, who clearly have no care of the repercussions their actions cause in the local community.

“However, the week of action is just one week of the year, and we will continue to fight back against most serious violence 365 days a year, taking these destructive drugs off the streets, bringing criminals to justice, and dismantling organised crime groups wherever they operate.”

A police spokesperson said ‘another disturbing trapping of organised crime groups is the exploitation of vulnerable people, in the form of cuckooing and modern slavery’.

“The modern slavery team, working with Immigration Enforcement, the Department for Work and Pensions, and our NPT officers, identified and safeguarded potential victims of exploitation at premises across the city,” they said.

“The teams visited 11 Turkish style barbers, where it was learned that seven employees were being paid below the national minimum wage. 16 people were offered safeguarding advice, and two people arrested on suspicion of immigration offences. Two people were also served civil penalty notices for employing illegal workers, which carry fines of up to £60,000 per illegal worker.”

Throughout the week, their officers, with support from the Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), delivered engaging talks to around 700 people, visited 25 local shops and businesses, and conducted six Drugs Intervention Programme outreach visits.

DCI Oughton added: “The week of action has been a great success, and our officers can take pride in the positive outcomes they have achieved. The seizure of class A and B drugs worth well over £200,000 from the community, the arrest of 34 individuals we believe may carry knives or be responsible for violence, 12 of whom have been charged, crackdowns on modern slavery and positive engagement with vulnerable people, all speak to the dedication and perseverance of our officers.”