Homes in Ilford and Dagenham among those raided by police in bid to crack down on spice dealing

The Metropolitan Police has been fighting to get the Class B synthetic cannabis off the streets of central London since March.

As part of “Operation Spatha”, which targets dealers working in Charing Cross, addresses in Ilford, Dagenham, Westminster, and Lambeth were raided early on Tuesday (June 27).

A large quantity of the drug “ready for supply” was found at the property in Ilford.

Five men aged between 30 and 48 and a 19-year-old woman were arrested in connection with spice dealing. More suspects are yet to be targeted.

The Met is desperate to get the “dangerous” psychoactive drug off the streets as it can cause people to collapse and make users anti-social and violent.

Chief Superintendent Peter Ayling said: “Spice has a devastating impact on users who are often very vulnerable and it has increased the demand on public services.

“Those dealing it often don’t know what they are selling and have little regard for the terrible effect this substance has on people and the community.

“Operation Spatha has been a great success and we will continue to make the lives of thoughtless and opportunistic dealers very uncomfortable.’’