Operation AVRO made its crime-smashing return to Trafford yesterday, delivering 24-hours of proactive action which saw more than 30 arrests for a range of offences.

The morning began with a series of warrants targeting criminality that local teams have been monitoring and building intelligence on.

This work resulted in the recovery of both Class A and Class B drugs, taking the illicit products out of circulation and those responsible for their distribution off the streets.

Following the raids and subsequent searches, a number of arrest attempts were conducted throughout the district – targeting suspects who were wanted for a range of offences, including breaching court orders, and in connection with ongoing investigations.

Much of this work was completed thanks to the intelligence gathered within the community – acting on issues that the public wants us to see take action on.

Utilising specialist resources – including our Live Facial Recognition technology and knife arches – work continued throughout the day, securing arrests, seizures, stop-searches and more.

This included officers securing two arrests for in the early hours for burglary and going equipped – with the district already seeing 150 less burglary offences over the last year due to ongoing proactive work. This action has resulted in Trafford having the lowest amount of burglary offences in the force.

In total, 32 arrests were made by officers as part of Operation AVRO.

A traffic operation saw multiple people stopped for a range of driving offences, including not wearing a seatbelt, using mobile phones, and more than 50 traffic offence reports. As part of the work, we seized two vehicles, made two arrests for impaired driving, and one for an immigration offence.

While direct and proactive enforcement was the theme of the day, equally vital engagement activities were carried out in the borough.

This included school and college inputs, information stands in town centres, business drop-ins, and care home visits.

Whether educating young people on knife crime or reminding businesses that we stand firmly behind them to tackle shoplifting and abuse against workers, Trafford officers were keen to remind people that they will do their utmost to prevent criminality and protect the law-abiding public.

Chief Superintendent Mike Allen, district commander for Trafford, said: “AVRO’s return to Trafford yesterday delivered exactly what the public want to see – criminals’ doors going in, suspects being led out in cuffs, and officers speaking to their communities.

“Across the day, officers secured 32 arrests, seized vehicles, recovered drugs, submitted offence reports, and stop-searched suspects across the entire district. While this is a significant planned day of disruption, I must emphasise that this sort of work is constantly carried out, as officers look to tackle crime and protect our communities.

“It was great to see numerous engagement events – from school visits to high street stalls – and I want the public to know that we will always act with their best interests at heart, so I would urge them to get in touch with any concerns they may have. Their intelligence and tip-offs inform our work and means we can take decisive action when it is required.”