Police teams working to tackle knife crime and violence carried out a day of action in Crawley on Saturday 4 September.

Officers working under Operation Safety completed knife sweeps in Memorial Gardens, West Green Park and Goffs Park, and patrolled hot-spot areas for crime and anti-social behaviour.

Officers on proactive patrol arrested six people during the day for offences including assault occasioning actual bodily harm, possession of an offensive weapon, being wanted on warrant, and sexual assault.

An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs after running from officers when they tried to engage with him in the town centre.

He came to a stop in an alleyway nearby, where dozens of wraps of suspected crack cocaine were found under a vehicle. He has been released under investigation while enquiries continue.

During the day, a large knife and two hammers were also seized by police.

Officers engaged with around 40 people, highlighting the dangers of carrying a knife and the work being done by police to tackle the issue.

Sergeant Scott Walters said: “This day of action in Crawley is just one example of the proactive work being done by Sussex Police to take action on knife crime and serious violence.
“As well as targeting offenders and disrupting criminal activity, our focus is raising awareness of the dangers of knife possession to prevent lives being impacted by knife crime.
“We will continue to work to keep our communities safe from knife crime, and encourage anyone with any information or concerns to report it to us so we can respond effectively.”

You can report knife crime online or by calling 101. In an emergency always call 999.

To report knife crime anonymously go to https://www.fearless.org/en/give-info.

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