Four arrests as police seize motorbikes, weapons and Class A drugs in South Tyneside
Northumbria Police are continuing to crackdown on vehicle-related criminality in South Tyneside.
Officers have made four arrests as they seized five nuisance motorbikes, weapons and Class A drugs on Tuesday, July 8.
Northumbria Police’s Serious Violence Disruption Unit (SVDU) were out on the borough’s streets to crackdown on vehicle-related criminality.
In one incident, police spotted a man on a Sur-Ron electric motorbike on South Frederick Street, South Shields, acting suspiciously.
Officers quickly zeroed in on the suspect and following a search, they uncovered £1,600 in cash, along with 18 wraps of cocaine - prompting the man, who is in his 30s, to be arrested.
A subsequent search of a property linked to the man uncovered other drugs, as well as a loaded crossbow and a zombie knife.
The man has since been released under investigation.
The SVDU then spotted bikes performing wheelies and being ridden on the wrong side of the road before heading into Temple Memorial Park.
Officers were deployed to the park and arrested two teenage boys, aged 14 and 17, while another suspect fled the scene.
Both teenagers are due to be interviewed by officers.
Officers spotted another bike being ridden dangerously on Chichester Road, prompting police to follow it to the Bents Park Road area.
After the suspect rode across a sports field where members of the public were playing football, running, and walking their dogs, plain-clothes officers got ahead of the bike and brought it to a stop at the Bents Recreation Ground.
A teenager was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and has since been charged with a number of offences - he is due to appear in court later this month.
Sergeant Fran Joyce, of the SVDU, said: “This was fantastic work from our officers, who spotted these bikes being ridden dangerously in our area and quickly got suspects detained.
“Let us be clear, no-one should have to put up with nuisance vehicles in their neighbourhood under any circumstances.
“Understandably, we know this is a concern for many residents across the Force area and please be reassured that will not be tolerated.
“We’ll continue to do everything in our power to disrupt this kind of criminality through our work so that everyone feels as safe as possible and able to go about their daily lives hassle free.
“The public are our eyes and ears in the community – please know that your intelligence is vital, so we would ask that you continue to report any issues so that we can target our resources accordingly.”
You can report any vehicle anti-social behaviour to Northumbria Police by sending a direct message on social media or using the live chat/report forms on the Force’s website.
Alternatively, you can call 101 or if a crime is taking place, 999.