Guns and more than £150,000 in cash seized as police fight serious and organised crime

Officers have seized more than £150,000 and taken more guns off the streets thanks to major investigations as part of Operation Target, our ongoing fight against serious and organised crime in the West Midlands.

Officers from our illicit cash team intercepted a black Volvo S90 in Hockley and found a cardboard box containing £150,000 in cash in the boot.

When police searched the driver’s house, officers found £16,000 in Scottish and Irish bank notes.

The suspect has now been released while WMP investigated further after his arrest on 19 December.

Police said in statement:

Our Major Crime Proactive Team also recovered a loaded Walther P22 handgun in a manbag hidden in the loft of a property in Hockley Birmingham.

A 17-year-old boy has now been charged and is now awaiting trial.

Operation Target focuses on the most serious crimes – and includes the targeting of drug dealers, firearms, money laundering, organised immigration crime and the criminal and sexual exploitation of children.

Our Major Crime Proactive Team has also protected more children by charging and convicting sexual predators.

The team’s work led to the conviction of Christopher Brand, who made plans to rape the children of a woman he was messaging online.

And when the team received intelligence that a registered sex offender was trying to speak to a girl aged 12, they moved to arrest him at ho some and seized a phone which he was not permitted to have.

On it, were child abuse images of category A – the most serious.

He was charged after being interviewed, and admitted five charges the next day in court. He will be sentenced later this month.

The Major Crime Proactive Team has also arrested six people who were wanted as part of manhunts, which are major searches for those wanted over the most serious crimes.

Det Ch Insp Ryan Chambers said: “We’re relentlessly pursuing those involved in serious and organised crime, in all its forms, across the West Midlands.

“We’ve taken guns and cash off the streets, and have succeeded in putting some really serious criminals, who pose a real risk of harm to communities, and in particular children, behind bars.

“This work wouldn’t be possible without the help of the community. We rely on information from people, so if you know of people involved in serious and organised crime, our team will be ready to received that information in confidence and pursue them.”