THREE solicitors and a legal assistant were arrested today by police investigating how a major drug dealer laundered his profits.

Officers from the National Crime squad swooped on five East Lancashire practices -- one each in Blackburn, Earby and Clitheroe and two in Burnley.

Private addresses in Barnoldswick, Clitheroe, Padiham and Colne were also searched.

Computer equipment and documents were seized. Eight men and three woman, including the solicitors and legal assistant, were arrested in connection with alleged money laundering offences. Another man, from Burnley, was also arrested in Malaga, Spain, by Spanish police and his extradition is being sought.

All the arrested people are British and aged between 20 to 50.

Details of which solicitors' practices were involved on have not been revealed.

The arrests are part of Operation Norfolk, a drug trafficking investigation carried out by officers from the Chorley branch of the National Crime Squad. It resulted in 11 people being convicted of conspiracy to supply class A drugs in January 2002.

Head of the criminal organisation which generated huge profits, Matthew Glover, of Cliviger, was sentenced to 25 years in prison in January 2002. His associates, mainly from the Burnley and Ribble Valley areas, received a total of 101 years in jail.

In January this year, Glover, who made £3million from drug trafficking, had a confiscation order for £370,000 imposed by the court, including the seizure of his house. The National Crime Squad said they suspected others assisted Glover in laundering drugs money and that today's arrests were a continuation of that.

Detective Inspector Steve Baldwin said: "Operation Norfolk was a successful drug trafficking investigation that resulted in the conviction of a major drug dealer and seizure of his assets.

"However, the investigation did not stop there."

A practice in Keighley, West Yorkshire was also searched.