Seven in court after police raids which saw almost £1million worth of cannabis seized

Two men, one from Billingham and the other from Hartlepool, are among seven people arrested and charged in connection with drugs offences.

Cannabis was recovered from properties in Thornaby, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Billingham and Durham. Two vehicles and £10,000 cash were also seized.

Alfred Boriqi, 36, of Milton Road, Hartlepool and Laert Duzha, 30, of Bedale Avenue in Billingham, are among the men who have appeared before magistrates. Both are due to appear at Teesside Crown Court later this month.

Superintendent Tariq Ali said: “Our dedicated Drugs Enforcement Team work tirelessly every day in a bid to tackle the supply of drugs in Cleveland and last week their hard work paid off after they seized a huge amount of cannabis.

“Week in and week out they continue to crackdown of drugs supply in Cleveland in order to remove potentially-harmful drugs from our streets and bring those allegedly responsible to justice.

“Criminality and the associated antisocial behaviour around drugs offences causes nothing but misery amongst our communities and we will strive to reduce the supply of drugs in our area to improve the lives of those living in our communities.”

Police officers carried out drugs raids at Milton Road, in Hartlepool and Bedale Avenue, in Billingham. Five other properties were also raided across Cleveland and Durham.