Rail police target drugs and knives

British transport police will use mobile knife arches at train stations in Manchester today to catch crooks carrying weapons.

Operation Shield will also utilise drug sniffer dogs to catch people carrying drugs on trains and in stations.

British Transport Police are carrying out the crackdown in the North West with more than 50 officers and PCSOs using the airport-style metal detection scanners to underline a clear message that criminal behaviour will not be tolerated on the rail network.

They will be at Manchester’s Victoria and Oxford Road stations as well as in Liverpool, Preston and Chester.

Police chiefs say that since its launch in 2006, Operation Shield has proved effective in reducing crime and seizing weapons at train stations across the country.

It’s part funded through the Government’s Tackling Knives Action Programme (TKAP) and will involve BTP working closely with colleagues from Greater Manchester Police and Merseyside Police.

Insp Adrian Yorston, who is overseeing the operation for BTP, said: “Operation Shield is being supported by TKAP with a brief to tackle anti-social behaviour, knife and drug crime.

“We want people to feel safe and secure when using trains and stations in the North-West and Operation Shield is just one way in which we can show that criminality will not be tolerated.

“The message to anyone carrying weapons or drugs is clear — you will be caught and robustly dealt with. We know that the vast majority of people who use the targeted stations are law-abiding and these people have nothing to fear from the presence of the arches or dogs.

“This operation is all about detecting and deterring criminals and giving reassurance to passengers and staff that BTP is committed to tackling crime.”