POLICE stormed through the door of a flat in Oxford and arrested three suspected dealers as part of a city wide crack down on drug crime.

The Oxford Mail was given exclusive access as officers conducted the raid at a property in Blackbird Leys this week and seized large quantities of heroin and crack cocaine.

The raid was part of a wider war on drugs taking place in the city as the force adapts to new challenges involving organised crime and exploitation.

Police constable Alex Penn, who organised the raid, said the important thing was letting the public know that drug dealing will not be tolerated.

He said: “It was a very positive result. We’re here to tackle drug crime and related gang activity and reassure the public.

“It might sound like a cliché but at the end of the day we are here to reassure the public and when we get told that people are worried about gangs and drugs its nice to be able to reassure them.”

Tuesday’s raid took place at around 4.30pm on Tuesday.

After a briefing, a team of officers - including five PCSOs, two plain-clothed members of the Stronghold team and two specialists to break through the front door - headed to the property.

All of the PCSOs were stationed on bikes at various locations surrounding the building to watch out for potential runners or drugs flung from windows.

The rest of the team pulled up outside of the flats and immediately charged up the stairs and to the door of the targeted flat.

Using an ‘enforcer’ or battering ram - known to police as ‘the big red key’ - the door was forced open with one swift blow.

With that, officers quickly and loudly made their way into the property.

Overseeing Sergeant Neil Applegarth said the approach is what American’s may refer to as ‘shock and awe’ - using manpower, loud noises and fast movement to dazzle the suspects.

After a short struggle the three people, two men and a woman, were detained - but two had secreted drugs inside their bodies, drawing out the process.

Eventually officers managed to recover a significant quantity of heroin and crack cocaine.

There were several hundred ‘deals’ worth somewhere between £500 to £1,000.

After the dust had settled, officers were preparing to check phones to corroborate evidence of dealing.

Sgt Applegarth said: “The more we can do to break down the drug market the safer everyone is.

“I think this kind of thing must have a significant effect. We’ve just taken hundreds of deals off the street – that’s hundreds of people who are not going to get that.

“I hope people are pleased to see what we’re doing and find it reassuring having these drugs removed from the streets.”

Police has to get a warrant on the property in order to take action - which requires intelligence from more than one source.

Once police have enough information they are able to present their case to a magistrate.

If approved, officers usually have around one month to act on the warrant.

Any information from the public is anonymised as soon as it is passed on for the first time in order to protect the public. This means even officers performing the raid do not know the source.

p A 48-year-old man who was arrested during the raid has been released under investigation

p A man, 25, and a woman, 37, were charged with possession with intent to supply Class A drugs