AT DAWN the sound of smashed glass tinkling onto the pavement can barely be heard through the driving rain.

Cops carefully lay down a Kevlar rug and silently start climbing through the shattered window and into the house.

Police officers storming a house through a broken window using a small ladder during a drug raid.Cops opted to enter through a bay window for quick access to the house Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia Two Greater Manchester Police officers breaking down a door during a raid.A second warrant was carried out where cops broke down the door in Bolton Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia A police officer searches the interior of a white car during a drug raid.Cops also search a suspects car at another warrant where the man is believed to have been couriering drugs Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

With an almighty roar, sudden shouts of “police, stay where you are” announce the officers’ arrival to the oblivious residents and their sleeping neighbours.

Unbeknown to his family, the dazed young man being put in cuffs is suspected of being a key player in a serious organised group couriering kilos of Class A to other gangs nearly 300 miles away.

But now they’ve been taken out of play.

His arrest is one of the 12 warrants being executed in tightly coordinated 6am raids.

The gang is suspected of having trafficked 200kgs of drugs – potentially netting £15million in profits.

Five minutes away a simultaneous raid is taking place. As law enforcement are outside sawing the door in half, the baffled suspect opens it.

Illustration of a map of the UK showing Bolton as a central hub for drug distribution to Glasgow, Swansea, Gloucester, Plymouth, and London.The Bolton OCG were ferrying drugs across England, Scotland and Wales Two large wrapped packages of recovered cocaine with "093" labels.Inside the one house the cops found two kilos of cocaine hidden under a bed Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

It’s a rude awakening for his younger family members who have no idea he’s allegedly involved in couriering drugs to , , and as well as .

The morning of action on Wednesday saw nine people aged between 20 and 56, including one woman, arrested for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

Greater Manchester spent nearly a year working on their case to take down the alleged gang in Operation Adela.

Detective Sergeant Richard McCorry said: “This was a very well-embedded and sophisticated organised crime group that has likely been running for a few years.”

Det. Sgt. Richard McCorry wearing a light pink shirt and dark tie, looking at the camera.DS McCorry believes the gang is responsible for over 200kilos of drugs in the UK Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia A handcuffed man in a white T-shirt being escorted by police officers.One suspect called the media “b*stards” as he was taken into custody Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

DS McCorry’s team is planning more arrests to pick up the final members of the gang hiding in Manchester.

He warns them: “We’re watching you. This isn’t the end.”

Over the course of their investigation cops have seized 36kgs of drugs -primarily cocaine and heroin – but they’ve also taken ketamine and , alongside a variety of Class C drugs.

Nationwide, cocaine seizures are up 13 per cent year on year, with powder cocaine accounting for 60 per cent of all drugs found, according to Government figures.

Between March 2024 and March 2025, more than 18 tonnes of cocaine was found by cops and Border Force.

Back in the house with the smashed bay window, officers find two kilograms of cocaine – the same amount they found on a suspected courier for the gang at the weekend en route to Gloucester.

Then, in a storage unit police raided, a further four kilograms of cocaine was discovered hidden among kids’ clothing and toys.

It was just a few hundred yards from a primary school.

Det. Sgt. Rob O'Brien holding up two plastic evidence bags containing drugs.DS O’Brien searched the unit where drugs were stored Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia Police officers in tactical gear preparing for an early morning raid.A second set of drug raids took place on Thursday targeting a local drugs line Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

Also stashed inside the unit was £2,000 made up of bundles of £50 notes in a safe, plus a cash counting machine.

Detective sergeant Rob O’Brien said: “Drugs is a cash rich business.

“They won’t want to spend time rummaging. They want to be in and out as quickly as possible.”

Police dog Bruce was also brought in to search the rest of the shipping container to make sure no other drugs were hidden away.

Police officers in riot gear raid a building.Four flats in the same new build block were raided by police at 5.40am Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia Police officers in tactical gear using a power tool to force entry into a home.The doors were sawn in half before being smashed apart by the tactical aid unit Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

Five men and one woman have been charged with conspiracy to supply Class A drugs namely cocaine and heroin.

Another man has been charged with possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, and a final man with conspiracy to money launder and participate in the activities of an Organised Crime Group.

For , their war on drugs is far from over as they’re determined to stamp out the criminals peddling narcotics at home and away.

At 5.40am on Thursday morning, four flats in a newbuild block in Swinton, , were raided with doors sawed in half before being smashed in.

An arrested man in handcuffs being led to a police van by an officer.Six men were arrested in the warrants for a variety of offences including conspiracy to supply Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia Chief Inspector Lee Gridley, in uniform, with a police van in the background.Chief Inspector Lee Gridley said they were investigating to see if there was cuckooing Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

As one of the doors gave way, a black and tan sausage dog shot out and scurried away from the noise. The terrified pup was later found by GMP’s drone squad and brought home.

Alerted to the cops by the screams of the reciprocating saw, one man attempted to flee by climbing out a first floor bathroom window in nothing but his tracksuit bottoms.

Police escorting an arrested, shirtless, handcuffed man who escaped from a window.One suspect tried to flee cops by climbing out a first floor bathroom window Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia An arrested man in handcuffs being restrained by a police officer from Greater Manchester Police, with a police van in the background.The same man later attempted to flee while being taken into custody Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

His escape bid failed, and he was cuffed by waiting officers.

The four flats are suspected of being linked by a drugs line which is being investigated as part of Operation Thundercrest.

It’s flooding the area with Class A drugs crack cocaine and heroin.

And officers believe that there is modern slavery and possible “cuckooing” – a sinister tactic in which dealers use violence, drugs and manipulation to take over a vulnerable person’s home.

These suspects were arrested in new-build council-run temporary housing for those who have been homeless. Each flat comes with an electric car charging point, but there isn’t a single car in the drive.

No charges have been brought yet in relation to the Salford warrants.

Neighbourhood Chief Inspector Lee Gridley, for GMP’s Salford District, told The Sun: “This line has been running for a few months and drugs bring with them all kinds of criminality.

“Theft of motor vehicles, burglaries. Today we’ve recovered distinctive property that we believe is from a local recent burglary.

Thea Jacobs, a reporter, stands in front of a police van during early morning drug raid.The Sun joined GMP for two days of raids on gangs suppling drugs Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia Two homes with damaged doors after a police raid.The flats in Swinton are being used as temporary accomodation Credit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia

“We’ve got to work out the levels of criminality for the men arrested today.

“Vulnerable people are preyed upon by others. That isn’t lost on us and we will be looking closely at this.

“A line has been disrupted preventing harmful drugs from reaching the streets and vulnerable people being exploited.”

Six men were arrested in the Thursday raids on a variety of charges including possession with intent to supply, possession of an offensive weapon and burglary.

Across the UK, the amount of heroin seized has increased by 33 per cent since 2024 – with police and Border Force finding 589kgs compared to 441kgs between March 2023 and 2024.

Crack cocaine seizures have also gone up by 106 per cent from 40kgs to 81kgs, compared to the previous year.

Often gangs will use addiction to coerce people into criminality and the affects of addiction can be devastating as Tony, a Forward Trust lived experience ambassador, knows.

“I was consumed by my addiction,” he said.

“Every minute of every day was an endless cycle of trying to get money to use and then using.

“I think people think that using drugs like crack is enjoyable. The truth is it really isn’t. You use crack to get high.

“Once you’re high you feel like you need to come down so you use heroin. At no point do you ever feel content. Just this feeling that the next one will solve the problem but it never does.”

He added: “I started using drugs at 11 and heroin and crack at 15. For years I was in and out of addiction, and . I lost my kids, relationships and pretty much everything that mattered to me.

“I’ve spent about 15 years of my life in prison because of the lifestyle that came with my addiction. I’m nearly 5 years clean now which is mad when I think about where I came from.”

And it’s to protect communities and people like Tony that cops keep on working to take out drug lines.

“You should be afraid,” CI Gridley warned the organised crime gangs. “We’re always watching.”