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It took just one call about a firearm being seen outside of a secondary school to issue a hammer blow to two of London’s most prolific gangs.
In raids across 15 addresses in Merton, south London, on a dark and wet morning yesterday, officers made 23 arrests.
Machetes as long as an adult’s forearm were discovered alongside Class A drugs and off-road bikes which are suspected to have been stolen.
Over the last three years, people in the area have been complaining about increasing antisocial behaviour.
E-scooters were being ripped from beneath people’s feet, and balaclava-clad gangs of youths were intimidating residents.
The officers prepare outside for the raid, which took place in south London yesterday morning (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Met Police at the first property which was allegedly being used by squatters (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Two gangs which cover the London borough of Merton are at the heart of it all – and all it took was one phone in to help unravel their activity.
Detective Superintendent Ian Campbell told Metro: ‘A firearm was supposedly spotted outside of a secondary school just before Christmas.
‘This led to us piecing together pieces of the puzzle of gang activity, and this morning we have disrupted them.’
Doors cut down as families slept
A disc cutter being used to beat down the door to one of the homes raided (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Officers filing into the house shortly after (Picture: Nick Edwards)
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Metro joined the Met Police as they raided homes to tackle gang violence across Merton (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Metro joined the Met on their raids, visiting three of the 15 properties which were raided across the borough.
Meeting in a retail park near the first property, hordes of officers dressed head-to-toe in protective gears filled into vans.
The properties – all residential homes – were being targeted in two waves. The first set were raided at around 5am – the second an hour later.
Some of the buildings were entered by ramming the door down. An officer used a disc cutter to saw away the glass door of another.
Neighbours soon crowded around to watch after the noise shook through the street.
What was found?
Machetes found at the third property which was allegedly ‘cuckooed’ (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Drugs officers uncovered during their raid (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Controlled medication, which police say their believed to be opioids, discovered at the property (Picture: Nick Edwards)
The first property, where the squatters were staying, uncovered drugs and e-bikes which were suspected to have been stolen. Officers also found drugs in the second home.
In total, 15 vacuum sealed packages of cannabis and approximately 100 wraps of Class A drugs were recovered across the 15 properties searched.
Three (unconfirmed but suspected) BB guns, a Taser, a can of CS spray, a samurai sword, ten prohibited weapons, two high-powered surron bikes and £40,0000 in cash were also seized.
Five suspects were arrested on suspicion of modern-day slavery offences owing to the suspicion of child exploitation.
Cuckooing
A common theme, however, is many of the homes raided were not being used by the actual owners.
In the first property Metro visited, squatters had allegedly taken over the building. And in the third property we saw, the flat had been ‘cuckoo-ed’.
Cuckooing is a term given to a property ‘taken over’ by criminals, who usually target vulnerable homeowners.
The name is inspired by the cuckoo bird which steals the nests of others.
Met Police searching the outside of one of the properties raided yesterday (Picture: Nick Edwards)
A woman arrested at the scene yesterday (Picture: Nick Edwards)
Sup Int Campbell told Metro: ‘Sadly we are seeing it more and more these days. People with learning difficulties or mental health issues are usually targeted, and are treated so callously by the criminals.’
It can be difficult to truly establish when a home has been cuckooed, but officers take an empathetic approach to any suspected cases.
Inspector Kevin Chambers told Metro: ‘We want to be safeguarding and looking after these people who are at risk, not punish them.’
The flat was given a closure order, which forbids anyone from entering the property for a set period of time.
‘It has already been established as a place for criminal activity, so who is to stop people from just taking it over again?’ said.
‘This way, we can prevent that from happening.’
Items recovered from the scene
Number of arrests: 23
Drugs recovered: 15 vacuum sealed packages of Cannabis, approximately 100 wraps of Class A drugs and 15-20 bottles of Promethazine, which police believe could contain opiods. In addition to this, there was also smaller amount of Class B drugs found.
Weapons seized: Five firearms (three suspected but unconfirmed BB guns, one Taser and one can of CS spray), one Samurai sword and ten prohibited weapons.
Cash seized: Approximately £40,000
Safeguarding actions: Five suspects were arrested on suspicion of modern-day slavery offences owing to the suspicion of child exploitation. One of the addresses subjected to a closure notice is a suspected cuckooed address, which aims to prevent the offenders from returning.
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