A TOTAL of 30 people have now been arrested in an undercover police sting to combat drug dealing in Worcester.

More than 150 officers took part in the operation which saw warrants executed at 13 addresses in Worcester today.

A total of 14 people are currently in custody on suspicion of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

On Tuesday, 22 addresses were entered, 16 in the West Midlands area and a further six in Worcester.

Officers arrested 16 people and 15 people have already been charged with conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

As reported exclusively in today's Worcester News, 11 suspects appeared at Worcester Magistrates' Court yesterday.

The defendants, who come from Worcester and the West Midlands, each faced charges relating to drug dealing in the Faithful City.

It follows a three-month investigation by West Mercia Police's Serious Organised Crime Unit targeting the supply of heroin and cocaine to dealers in Worcester by organised crime groups from the West Midlands

The investigation, entitled Operation Dorado, saw undercover officers deployed onto the city’s streets between October 2011 and January to track down suspected dealers.

West Midlands Police and the British Transport Police were also involved in the sting.

DCI Dave Andrews, who leads SOCU, said: "Operation Dorado is a multi-faceted, complex and long-standing investigation that was launched following concerns raised by residents in Worcester, in particular about street dealing.

"The Serious Organised Crime Unit is aiming to not just tackle these street dealers but the organised crime groups from the West Midlands who are supplying them with heroin and cocaine.

"Operation Dorado is part of West Mercia Police's dedicated efforts to fight organised crime across our force area.

"These arrests follow an operation in Telford and Shrewsbury earlier this month that saw 27 arrests and 14 people charged with conspiracy to supply drugs.

"This means we have now arrested 57 people in the month of May in our fight against the illegal drugs trade.

"Many different specialist departments and units have taken part in Op Dorado and we have worked closely with colleagues from West Midlands Police and British Transport Police, sharing intelligence and resources to ensure there is no hiding place for those intent on profiting from other people's misery.

"There is a lot of work still to do and our focus now is dealing with the individuals we have in custody."

Supt Steve Cullen, police commander for south Worcestershire, said: "Although the issue of drugs is no more of a problem in Worcester than it is elsewhere in the country, unless we robustly tackled the supply of Class A drugs, they can blight our communities, causing immeasurable misery.

"Drug addiction fuels violence and crimes such as burglary and robbery.

"By proactively targeting the serious and organised groups who choose to drive this criminality, we are bringing to justice those who cause much harm in our communities.

"Information from the public is our lifeblood and has been central to Operation Dorado.

"So far the operation has been a real success and I believe our actions will have a huge impact on drugs supply in Worcester and beyond; but this work will need to continue.

"I appeal for to anyone who has any information around drug misuse and associated crimes to contact pass it on. We act on each and every piece of information that comes in to us."

At yesterday's hearing, the court was told how one defendant was allegedly dealing up to £700 worth of drugs a day, while another allegedly sold class A substances to an undercover officer on 10 occasions.

Leighton Bowkett, aged 39, of Brookthorpe Close, Warndon, Worcester, and Michael Juson, 45, of no fixed address, appeared jointly charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine and heroin between November 14 and January 24.

They were remanded in custody and will next appear at Worcester Crown Court on Tuesday, June 12.

Liam O’Rourke, 25, of Millhams Avenue, Warndon, and Mohammed Bashir, 45, of Madehurst Road, Birmingham, were both charged with conspiracy to supply crack cocaine between November 23 and February 1.

They were all remanded in custody and will next appear at Worcester Crown Court on Tuesday, June 12.

Jewade Graham, 22, of Crosby Close, Wolverhampton, Rohan Hanchard-Kerr, 20, of Clark Road, Wolverhampton, and John Francis, 34, of Wyld’s Lane, Worcester, have each been charged with conspiracy to supply crack cocaine between January 8 and February 29.

They were remanded in custody and will next appear at Worcester Crown Court on Tuesday, June 12.

Also appearing before court were Maria Fortey, 50, of Park Street, Worcester; Lieann Smith, 28, of Broad Street, Worcester; Malachi Mowatt, 24, of Auckland Road, Birmingham, and Deniro Lee, 19, of Vanguard Close, Bromford, Birmingham.

All four were charged with conspiracy to supply heroin and cocaine between November 30 and May 2.

Fortey, Smith and Mowatt were remanded in custody and will next appear in court on June 13.

Lee was granted bail until that date on condition that he lives at his home address, he does not enter Worcester except to attend court and does not contact his co-accused.

Information can be passed on to West Mercia Police by calling 101 or ringing Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.