DRUG dealers across Blackburn, Darwen Hyndburn and the Ribble Valley have been warned to expect a visit from the police during the next few months as part of a major clampdown on criminal activities.

The warning came as the first crackdown day linked to Operation Except was carried out in Darwen.

A 39-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of supplying drugs during a raid on a flat in Ellenshaw Close yesterday morning and police seized around £500 worth of class A drugs believed to be heroin.

But Inspector Graham Ashcroft, from Darwen Police, warned that this was just the first of a series of police activities to target drug dealers across the division with different towns targeted each week.

He said: "The first day of action was in Darwen but it was part of a wider operation looking at Eastern Division as a whole. There will be other towns in the division where similar activities will be taking place.

"We won't be telling drug dealers what day or what time we will be coming but we can send a message to these people that if they are dealing we will be paying them a visit.

"We brought in extra resources above and beyond what we usually have in Darwen for this operation and we are really pleased with the result."

PC Stuart Rawsthorne, from the operation support unit at Great Harwood, said: "This was a good result for us. We have recovered quite a large amount of what we believe to be heroin."

Around 30 officers, including support units, dog handlers, the Road Policing Unit, community beat managers and officers from the intelligence department, took part in the raid and were also involved in a simultaneous operation involving monitoring vehicles coming in and out of Darwen.

During this exercise, using the Automatic Number Plate Recognition system, a car was stopped with the same registration as one used on a car involved in a recent robbery in Liverpool. The driver was due to be questioned by police in connection with the incident.

Inspector Ashcroft added: "Drug dealing is high on our agenda and we are working very hard to limit the amount of drugs available in Darwen.

"We have had a lot of success over the years with Operation Nimrod and recently Operation Except. This kind of operation disrupts their activities but it also sends a message of reassurance to the community."