Episode 4 Britain's Bravest Cops


Episode 4

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in the midst of a stop and search, then a gun is pulled, and suddenly,

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your life is in danger. Every year, Britain's bravest cops are honoured

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for the risks they take to keep us safe. Today, we hear their stories

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and join them on the streets as they continue to crack down on

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crime. This is Britain's Bravest Last year, there were over 18,000

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assaults on police officers, most of them just ordinary cops who

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didn't think twice about risking their own lives to protect the

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public and fight crime. In the week that Britain's most heroic officers

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are celebrated through the Police Federation's Bravery Awards, here

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are some of their stories. Coming up, we re-tell the moment

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when two courageous officers struggled through searing heat and

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a choking smoke to help a mother and baby trapped in a flat fire.

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couldn't breathe, the thoughts going through my head at that time

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were, if she doesn't answer the door, there's a possibility I may

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pass out at this point. We are on the streets of Aberdeen with an

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elite police dog unit tackling the most high risk call-outs.

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And we follow Northamptonshire and Manchester police as they continue

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their battle against Britain's rising drug problem.

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But first, how one brave cop's quick-thinking stopped a vicious

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pair of robbers. Early one December morning in 2007,

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newly-trained dog handler PC Katie Jones was all set for her regular

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shift in her home town of Preston. She was due to spend the day

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training with her supervisor, Sergeant Ian Tinsley. I was on my

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third day out as an operational police dog handler. I was really

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excited to be out, as we hadn't had what we call a dog incident where

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we're going to use the dog to search for offenders. It would have

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been roughly possibly about 8:20am, 8:30am when we picked up a

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transmission over the police radio in respect of they believed that

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there was intruders at the Hospital Inside the Hospital Inn, chef

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Anthony Gornall and his partner, the pub's landlady, Alison Morse,

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were being terrorised by armed robbers.

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I heard them walking upstairs and going into different rooms. What is

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So I said to Alison, get under the bed. I just heard them open the

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door and so I started walking towards the door. This guy just

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filled the door. Here he is!

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And he said, right, come with me. Where's the money?

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The masked man was violent well- known criminal Wayne McDonald. He

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was with his sidekick, David Tyrell. So he took me in the corridor, the

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other guy handed him his pistol, then he pistol-whipped me down the

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corridor on my head. So I got my keys, opened the safe. I think

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there was about �2,000, �3,000 in notes in there. They got the shot

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gun out. He just said, if you've any more money, you'd better tell

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me now or I'll blow your head off. So I said, there's no more money,

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and if there is, I don't know where it is. He turned the gun round and

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smashed my face. That's when Tyrell bent down to me and said, you'd

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better do as you're told, because he will kill you.

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As this horror was unfolding, PC Katie Jones had arrived outside the

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pub, oblivious to what was going on inside.

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As I headed towards the main entrance, I overheard somebody on

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the radio say that they could see At that time, I heard the main door

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rattle. So I automatically turned round with my dog, Chaos, at the

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side of me. Don't move!

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I was faced with a very large masked male pointing a shotgun at

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his shoulder height straight towards me.

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Get out of the way now! Katie's life was on the line, but

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she stood her ground and challenged McDonald.

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Drop the gun! I shouted at him to drop what he

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was holding. I'm warning you, I'll shoot you!

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At the same time, he shouted at me When I heard the shot and a

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helicopter in the background, I thought he was going back upstairs.

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Because there was police there. And that's the last thing he said to me,

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if there's any police out there, I'm coming back up here and I'm

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going to shoot you. When I was shot, it was

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excruciating pain. I felt like I'd been hit with a red-hot poker at

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150 miles per hour. The whole leg went numb. I just kept thinking to

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myself, don't look down, don't look down, because if I see a gaping

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hole in my leg, I'm going to pass out here and now. You know, I did

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think, this is it, my life's over with. You know, I'm going to die

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here, that's it had. And your life does kind of flash before you. And

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albeit it happened in a millisecond, everything did kind of come to me

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all at once. You know, my family, my friends, complete fear set in

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really. I was petrified I was going to lose my leg, frightened of what

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it was going to mean, if I was ever going to be able to walk again, was

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I ever going to be able to do my job again?

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But her ordeal wasn't over yet. McDonald was still on the loose.

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I was then aware that I had to get away from where I was. I had to

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kind of flee from the scene, because I was so frightened of him

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coming back out to try and do what he'd just done again.

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Seriously wounded, Katie mustered up the strength to get herself away

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It was obvious that she was injured, she was dragging her leg. So

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straightaway, my concern was for her. I'd no idea where the offender

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was who'd done the shot, I didn't know whether he'd immediately left

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the premises, I don't know whether he was still in the premises, so I

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was screaming at Katie to take I managed to get myself into a

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ditch at the rear of the pub car park, along with Chaos. And then I

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was aware of something going on behind me. And all I could hear was

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PC Tinsley shouting, armed police, put your gun down!

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Suddenly, the two fierce armed robbers were standing at the door.

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The offenders, McDonald and Tyrell, appeared from the same direction in

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which Katie had come. My initial thoughts at that particular time

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were that they were going to shoot her again. I adopted a firearm

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stance. I pointed two fingers, probably like kids do playing

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Cowboys and Indians, saying that I was an armed police officer, put

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the weapon down. On a couple of occasions, McDonald actually raised

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his hands above his head in like a surrender type mode. I remember

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thinking, I hope he's got bad eyesight, because if he had good

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eyesight, he would think, no, he hasn't got a gun.

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Sergeant Ian Tinsley had taken a huge and extremely risky gamble.

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Put the gun down, put it down now! Thankfully, it did have the desired

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effect, because at that point, both of them then dropped the bag and

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turned tail and ran. The men fled empty-handed and a

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police helicopter was scrambled to track them down. Within half an

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hour, McDonald was caught. Tyrell was found 12 hours later hiding

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under some tarpaulin near the pub. Katie's bravery had paid off.

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During the trial of McDonald and Tyrell, it became clear just how

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close PC Katie Jones had come to losing her life.

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It was revealed by the firearms expert for the prosecution that had

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that gun been aimed one degree more to the left, the main impact would

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have been straight through her lower abdomen and more likely to

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have killed her instantly. That's scary, it's frightening. To

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think that, you know, one degree... That's just a slight movement. And

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it does make you realise, it certainly makes me realise, that

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yes, all right, I got shot that morning, but I was so, so fortunate

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and so, so lucky to come out with just ten pellets in my leg.

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Katie has paid a hefty price for her bravery, but the staff at the

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Hospital Inn are eternally grateful to her.

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I think if Katie hadn't had been there and the police and the other

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dog handler, I dread to think what would have happened. I don't know.

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She's a brave woman, very brave. I couldn't have done it, I don't

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think. Tyrell got over seven years for his

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crimes, while McDonald was jailed for life. Katie's since made a full

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recovery and she was honoured with a Police Bravery Award. She's since

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returned to the beat with a new dog, Hero, while Chaos is enjoying life

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Britain's police are regularly putting their lives on the line. So

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having a canine partner can be invaluable. In the oil-rich city of

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Aberdeen, 40 year-old police dog handler George Shearer is on the

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front line of crime. In the back of his van, two vital police assets. A

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general-purpose dog called Sparky and a drugs dog called Sam. Often

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working alone, this tough canine unit are called to deal with the

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huge variety of dangerous crime in a patch covering hundreds of square

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miles. Quite often, I'm first on to the

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scene. The presence of the dogs is a wonderful deterrent. People run

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off in different directions. So compared to a human, it's a

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wonderful deterrent for stopping people. I'd be quite happy to

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control 10, 20 people, even if they're agitated. They just won't

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come near the dog. That keeps them at a safe distance away from me.

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It's 8pm and George has been assigned to provide back-up during

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a raid to arrest someone suspected of drug offences. The location has

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been under surveillance and the police are worried there may be

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dogs on the premises, so George is on standby to protect the officers.

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I've been called upon, one - to control the dogs, and secondly - I

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have a drugs dog with me and he will be carrying out a search of

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that property. Although George normally handles

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police dogs, he's often called in when owners' animals might present

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a threat. His first priority on the raid will be to locate and secure

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the owner's dogs using specialist tools.

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This is one of the pieces of equipment that we would use. We

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would look to sling this over the dog's head. And this pulls tightly,

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and then we can tie that off with the screw part here, and that keeps

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the dogs at a safe distance away from my body to prevent any bites

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and any contact with me as a person. And once we've got the dog set

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aside in a safe area, it's a quick release, a lever here that we would

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pull, and that can effectively release the dog. There's a lot of

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these types of dogs that are very strong and it does take a fair

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amount of effort to keep a dog restrained and at arm's length.

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With the officers briefed, a convoy of police officers make their way

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to the target's house. George is under no illusion, having worked in

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the dog unit for six years. He knows there is a real threat of

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injury. There have been incidents where

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I've gone to warrants and I've been bitten by dogs within the house.

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It's always something that I keep in the back of my mind when I go

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into these properties. The police face all kinds of

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unexpected threats as they execute warrants and raid properties, and

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dogs can be one of the most serious. Last year, Grampian Police were

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called in for 36 crimes for failing to keep dogs under control. As well

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as dealing with any potentially dangerous dogs, George will also be

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assisting fellow officers in the hunt for drugs.

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Yes, I've got a specialist dog that's trained to detect drugs, so

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once we get into the address and get everybody secured, I'll be

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taking out the drugs dog and he'll search the address and hopefully

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he'll indicate on some drugs within the property.

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The police park away from the suspect's house. They can't risk

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alerting the man or his dogs to their presence, which might give

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him a chance to dispose of any possible drugs or try and make a

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run for it. The element of surprise is critical.

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Police! So George is one of the first in.

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He must quickly locate and secure the dogs to ensure everyone's

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safety. We have gone into the property and

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there are two dogs within one room, and I think another two dogs have

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appeared from around the back of the property and ran in the front

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here. All the dogs seem fine and we've got control in the house now.

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The suspect is promptly apprehended and the police begin their search

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of the house for drugs. Every potential hiding place is

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thoroughly checked, even the most Just a trap that we have found

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underneath the house that gives access to the whole area underneath

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the house. You can see it is quite indeed entrance, so we will maybe

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consider getting a dog in under there. Because it is quite a large

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area. It would be a very good hidey hole for drugs.

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It is time to bring in Sam the sniffer dog, a four-year-old black

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Labrador. Come on. That's a boy. I felt it

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was worthwhile in deploying a dog under there. It is a nice safe area

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for him to search. He will do that quite quickly.

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Nothing doing at all down there other than a bit of mess.

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The officers are now carrying out a search by hand on the premises, and

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that will take about 30 minutes. the end of that, we will know

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In Scotland, the police face a never ending war on drugs, even in

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the most remote towns and villages. Aberdeen is no exception. Last year,

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Scottish police forces dealt with nearly 40,000 drug offences. PC

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George Shearer works a regular ten- hour night shift with his two dogs,

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Sparky and Sam. The following night, he gets an update on the house that

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was raided the day before. They found a total of �3,000 in

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cash, �2,000 of which was concealed in a sock within a dresser. And

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there was also a personal amount of cannabis recovered. So it is a

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positive result for that one. male was later charged with

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possession under the Misuse Of Drugs Act.

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Foxtrot five. It is not long into his shift when

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a call comes through. George is going to assist officers who are

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about to pull over a car. Stopping anyone late at night always carries

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a high risk of trouble, and the police suspect the owner of the car

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may be involved in criminal activities.

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This is a call, there is a unit in behind a car where there is

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intelligence on the car that it is involved in the supply of drugs.

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The unit just want to stop it. I am just going to assist. There are a

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number of people on board, and they might need a drugs dog in any case,

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so we are just going along to see By the time George arrives, the two

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people in the car, a man and a woman, have been detained. But

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there is compelling evidence of drug use. Watch. There is a bag of

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needles in there. Right, OK. There are some capped, some uncapped.

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Used needles carry a huge risk of harm. But despite the danger,

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George must still deploy sound to There was a bag of needles sitting

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in the foot well. We always have a check of the area that we are going

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to be putting a dog into, a house or a car, we always have a quick

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look to make sure there is no dangers for the dog. If a dog was

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to get pricked by a needle, the diseases are transferable to the

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dog. -- are not transferable. However, the dog could receive

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quite significant injuries are to the mouth area and the nose, etc.

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We always like to make sure that the area is safe before we put the

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We've turned up and we've taken a drugs dog in. He's carried out a

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search in the car. He's showing an interest in a number of things,

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actually. You could see on the document wallet for the car, there

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has clearly been power because up with a knife. -- powder cut up. He

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has indicated on that. He has indicated on to bags within the

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foot while of the vehicle, which both contain paraphernalia relating

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to drugs. And also on a tobacco pouch, looking closer in amongst

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the tobacco, there is a small notch of what we suspect to be cannabis

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The chap up there, he has clearly admitted ownership of the cannabis

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resin. He's been charged on the scene here. He's not been arrested.

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He'll just be cautioned and charged with that offence at the locus here.

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Grampian police are not only dealing with drug-related crime. In

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Scotland, vandalism and anti-social behaviour are big issues for local

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communities. Last year, they had to deal with 2000 incidents of damage

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to private property in Aberdeen It's the third call of the night.

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George and his dogs have been called to a suspected act of

:19:10.:19:13.

vandalism. George has little to go on except that the men could be

:19:13.:19:19.

dangerous. Back-up has not arrived yet, so he is on his own. With his

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experience and following a quick assessment of the situation, George

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starts searching for the suspects in order to stop them making an

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Suddenly, he spots one man fitting the description of one of the

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suspects. To ensure his safety, he deploys his five-year-old German

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shepherd. Sparky is a highly trained police dog, and will

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protect George at all costs. And with a bite of 238lbs per square

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inch, the suspect won't be making a George and Sparky make a formidable

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team. The two of them can do the job of several police officers.

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George decides to take the suspect back to the scene of the crime to

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meet the other officers. And, with Sparky so close, the suspect has no

:20:07.:20:17.
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It looks like George and Sparky have got their man, and they march

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The man is handcuffed and searched. George finds what he suspects to be

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ecstasy tablets. What's that? Other officers arrive, and the

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suspect is taken away for further The man caught with drugs was also

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breaching bail conditions, and should not have been in the area.

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He was remanded in custody pending a court appearance.

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Absolutely convinced that if the dog had not been present, the guy

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would have run away, and I doubt if he would have been caught. He

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certainly looked like he was going to do a runner when he first saw us.

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So it is a good enough result. You could see as well that the dog was

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watching the guy as we walking him back. He was just sending out a

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message to the guy, look, don't even think about running away.

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Because the dog is here, and he may well chase you. The dog has done

:21:41.:21:51.
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Even with a police dog, it takes a brave officer to patrol the streets

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alone in the middle of the night. The last thing you want is to find

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yourself in the situation that PC Paul Davies did in 2006. Called to

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a robbery at 3am, he suddenly found In the early hours one January

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morning, a CCTV operator spotted two men around the back of a

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shopping centre in Oxfordshire. picked up a couple of males walking

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around picking up dog-ends, acting suspiciously, so we just kept a

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camera on them, followed them all After two to three minutes, they

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were nowhere to be seen, and an The CCTV operator immediately

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dialled 999. First on the scene was Thames Valley police officer PC

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Paul Davies. I found that the rear access door

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had been forced open. I had a look inside, and couldn't see a great

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deal of disturbance, or whether anything was actually missing.

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Paul edged his way into the pitch- black store, armed only with a

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torch. He heard a noise, and shone a light towards it, revealing a

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coin-operated children's ride. And crouched in the front of this

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ride was a male, and I can see he was using a screwdriver to try and

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force open the cash container of I identified myself to him as a

:23:22.:23:25.

police officer, at which he jumped to his feet and started rushing to

:23:25.:23:31.

try and get back out of the store. But as he came rushing towards me,

:23:31.:23:35.

I grabbed hold of him, and told him that he was under arrest, and we

:23:35.:23:38.

had quite a struggle, during which he was using the screwdriver to try

:23:38.:23:48.

In the hands of a desperate man, a screwdriver can easily turn into a

:23:48.:23:54.

lethal weapon. Paul was in deep trouble.

:23:54.:23:59.

I could feel it hitting the side of my body armour several times. Had

:23:59.:24:03.

the blows gone on to my arms or up around my neck and head, then it

:24:03.:24:07.

would have been a different issue. One well-placed to stab to the neck

:24:07.:24:14.

or head could have seriously injured Paul, or even killed him.

:24:14.:24:18.

think once he realised I was going to hold on to him, it got more and

:24:18.:24:22.

more violent as he got more and more desperate to get away. As Paul

:24:22.:24:25.

battled with his attacker, he got a very nasty surprise. It was then

:24:25.:24:28.

that he shouted to the second defender who was within the store,

:24:28.:24:32.

and at that stage, the second man came rushing back down the store

:24:32.:24:39.

towards were I was. The man was wielding a chisel, and

:24:39.:24:46.

The man was wielding a chisel, and The man was wielding a chisel, and

:24:46.:24:49.

The man was wielding a chisel, and aimed straight for Paul. That has

:24:49.:24:52.

now almost doubled the odds a little bit, and I thought, I have

:24:52.:24:58.

got to be a bit careful. I was trying to use the person that I had

:24:58.:25:01.

already got as a sort of human shield. So we are then still

:25:01.:25:04.

crashing around in the back of the store. And eventually, we force our

:25:04.:25:07.

way back out through the rear entrance, and we sort of ended up

:25:07.:25:11.

in a bit of a bundle out the back. Once outside, Paul and his

:25:11.:25:14.

attackers were in full view of the CCTV camera. He was very determined

:25:14.:25:18.

to get them, but as soon as he had one, the other one would physically

:25:18.:25:21.

put up a fight to get the other one released. But he would always

:25:21.:25:26.

managed to maintain one of them, which is a lot of determination.

:25:26.:25:29.

And then the second offender came running back towards me, and he

:25:30.:25:33.

then started to kick me around the body and around the head, and at

:25:33.:25:37.

that point, he got hold of my ear and it felt like he was trying to

:25:37.:25:40.

rip my ear off. And although it was extremely painful, I was determined

:25:40.:25:44.

at that point that I was going to come out on top, and that this

:25:44.:25:47.

person wasn't going to get away. But the suspects were equally

:25:47.:25:52.

determined they weren't going to prison.

:25:52.:25:56.

This succeeded in overpowering Paul and wrenched themselves free.

:25:56.:25:59.

I chased after them, and after a short distance I was able to rugby-

:25:59.:26:02.

tackle the original offender back down to the ground, and the second

:26:02.:26:05.

defender turned, and I thought he was coming back to again have

:26:05.:26:09.

another go at attacking me. And it was at that stage, much to my

:26:09.:26:11.

relief, that I saw my support coming round the corner.

:26:11.:26:13.

Within seconds, the offenders were handcuffed and under arrest.

:26:13.:26:17.

You wouldn't throw your life away, but there are times when you would

:26:17.:26:20.

put your life at risk in order to help save others or to prevent, in

:26:20.:26:25.

this case to prevent crime. It is part of being a police officer.

:26:25.:26:27.

For tackling not one but two violent criminals, Paul was

:26:27.:26:30.

honoured with the police bravery award. And the men, they got their

:26:30.:26:34.

just deserts. They were both jailed for four years for burglary and

:26:34.:26:44.
:26:44.:26:47.

Britain is now the drug capital of Europe, and every day, our cops are

:26:47.:26:49.

fighting a battle against dangerous drug dealers, particularly those

:26:49.:26:56.

supplying Class A drugs like We're just going to do a quick stop

:26:57.:27:00.

search on you. Around 40 tons of cocaine enters Britain every year.

:27:00.:27:08.

Police estimate there are over In Northamptonshire, officers from

:27:08.:27:11.

Operation Guardian are coming down hard on drug crime, which is making

:27:11.:27:14.

life a misery for locals, spawning all kinds of anti-social behaviour

:27:14.:27:24.
:27:24.:27:25.

Today, the team is getting ready to raid someone suspected of drug

:27:26.:27:32.

offences in the local area. Once we go in there, we were just make sure

:27:32.:27:35.

that all persons are handcuffed, because we don't know, they may

:27:35.:27:40.

pose a threat, they may not. But just in case, we will secure

:27:40.:27:46.

everyone in there, handcuff them all. Lovely. Shall we give it five

:27:46.:27:51.

minutes, and meet downstairs at the van? Yes.

:27:51.:27:54.

The team of officers make their way to the flat. PC Alexandra Lloyd is

:27:54.:27:56.

constantly aware of the hidden dangers of the job.

:27:57.:28:00.

It is always in the back of your mind, and we quite often go in

:28:00.:28:03.

places where there are used needles. Quite often, the people in the

:28:03.:28:06.

homes will tell you, but there are occasions when they don't, so we

:28:07.:28:16.
:28:17.:28:21.

The team have no trouble getting But there is another at the top of

:28:21.:28:28.

the stairs. The officer with the But, surprisingly, it's an easy

:28:28.:28:35.

entry. The suspect has let them in himself. Any ID in the flat at all?

:28:35.:28:44.

Yes. Just tell us, and I'll get it. In my bedroom. The man is

:28:44.:28:47.

handcuffed and held in one room while the team search his flat.

:28:47.:28:51.

Anything that is seized, or if we are going to take anything or seize

:28:51.:28:54.

anything, then you'll be told what we are taking, OK? But it is easier

:28:54.:28:57.

for you to stay here so that the officers can search. All right,

:28:57.:29:00.

mate? If you want to have a read of that, feel free.

:29:00.:29:04.

What we are looking for is mainly Class B, cannabis or anything that

:29:04.:29:06.

is linked, or any paraphernalia that can provide information about

:29:06.:29:10.

lifestyle, as well. And information, intelligence, as well.

:29:10.:29:13.

The suspect has to watch on helplessly as PC Alexandra Lloyd's

:29:13.:29:19.

team bag up evidence. Cannabis is commonly used across

:29:19.:29:23.

the area. We are executing warrants all over the place. You deal with

:29:23.:29:26.

pockets of people that will be dealing cannabis, and you have got

:29:26.:29:29.

the people that generally use the cannabis as well, so we deal with

:29:30.:29:33.

all different sorts. Before long, the search turns up

:29:33.:29:40.

more than just cannabis. Some drugs there. It is looking like... They

:29:40.:29:42.

are certainly pills of some description. We have seen pills

:29:42.:29:46.

around, but not normally in that quantity, if I'm honest.

:29:46.:29:49.

The gentleman will be further arrested for the drug offences, and

:29:49.:29:52.

they will be seized, along with everything else that we've taken so

:29:52.:29:57.

far. I'm sure they'll be pleased, the powers that be.

:29:57.:30:02.

It's another success for Detective Inspector Stuart Hitchin. We do as

:30:02.:30:05.

much preparation as we can before we go into the warrants. We look at

:30:05.:30:09.

who the people are and what we are likely to face. We always make sure

:30:09.:30:12.

that we have the right people and the right resources on hand when we

:30:12.:30:22.

go through the door, so we are Northamptonshire Police have their

:30:22.:30:25.

work cut out tackling drug crime, but it's an even greater problem

:30:25.:30:29.

for Manchester's cops, where cannabis is rife. Last year,

:30:29.:30:32.

Greater Manchester Police found 877 cannabis farms, the second highest

:30:32.:30:42.
:30:42.:30:42.

in the UK. Most of them are set up in people's homes. Today, PC Jamie

:30:42.:30:45.

Heaton, of the Proactive Unit, is leading a raid on a suspected

:30:45.:30:51.

cannabis farm in the local area. The information he's got may or may

:30:51.:30:54.

not be reliable, but he needs to act to find out what the situation

:30:54.:31:00.

In terms of today's job to execute a search warrant...

:31:00.:31:03.

The market in cannabis is enormous, worth in excess of �1 billion in

:31:03.:31:07.

the UK alone. Customers come to the address on a

:31:07.:31:09.

daily basis and enter the front door. The activities increase

:31:09.:31:13.

during the evening. The cannabis is grown inside the house, but no

:31:13.:31:16.

further details are given. The intention is to attend the address

:31:16.:31:18.

this morning, force entry into the address, detain anyone that's in

:31:18.:31:23.

there and hopefully find a cannabis farm. All right? Thank you very

:31:23.:31:29.

much. Although the police are used to

:31:29.:31:34.

doing it every day, they can never afford to take any chances.

:31:34.:31:37.

That's a lot of dangers that can happen. People who cultivate

:31:37.:31:41.

cannabis can make a lot of money and stand to make a great loss when

:31:41.:31:48.

police attend and uncover or discover the cannabis farm. People

:31:48.:31:51.

will go to any lengths to evade police capture. We have attended

:31:51.:31:54.

search warrants before where we found numerous tools or numerous

:31:54.:31:57.

weapons in the address, some of which have been behind the front

:31:57.:32:06.

door. That's why we're forcing entry today.

:32:06.:32:10.

PC Johnson will be the first to enter the house.

:32:10.:32:14.

Firstly, we're always wary of dogs. They are always an unknown entity.

:32:14.:32:16.

Unless we get some specific intelligence that they are there,

:32:16.:32:19.

we are always wary about there being dogs at the address. Also,

:32:19.:32:24.

any barricades behind there. His job is to secure a swift entry

:32:24.:32:27.

into the property and, if necessary, he'll smash down the front door

:32:27.:32:33.

with a 23-kilogram enforcer. I'm more concerned about everybody

:32:33.:32:37.

else who's here, your team mates. I want to make sure nobody gets hurt

:32:37.:32:42.

and we'll do whatever's necessary to prevent that happening.

:32:42.:32:44.

Once the police have enough evidence linking their suspect to

:32:44.:32:48.

drugs, it's then up to the Proactive team to execute a search.

:32:48.:32:52.

This specially trained team do this day in day out, so they understand

:32:52.:32:57.

just how the drug business operates. There's a lot of money to be made

:32:57.:33:00.

from cultivating cannabis. Somebody that knows what they're doing can

:33:00.:33:05.

probably get about three to four crops a year. This can make them a

:33:05.:33:15.
:33:15.:33:22.

hell of a lot of money. Police officers! Stay where you

:33:22.:33:32.
:33:32.:33:33.

are! Sit down, sit down! Two men are handcuffed.

:33:33.:33:35.

We managed to get both the occupants inside detained without

:33:35.:33:38.

any fuss. No-one's got any injuries or anything, which is a big plus

:33:38.:33:41.

for us. Is there anything that you need to

:33:41.:33:44.

tell us before we start searching? I've got weed in my bedroom what

:33:44.:33:46.

you'll find. So there's some weed upstairs?

:33:46.:33:52.

Yeah, there's a bit of weed upstairs. Right, no problem. I'll

:33:52.:33:56.

tell you straight, you know what I mean? I'm not going to lie to you.

:33:56.:33:59.

You're not going to be stupid, are you, and start kicking off? No. All

:33:59.:34:03.

right, no problem. The police start their search and they notice a

:34:03.:34:07.

strong smell of cannabis. To me, that's more than a spliff, mate.

:34:07.:34:11.

Yeah. I think he's sealed it, it's been sealed at some point. That's

:34:11.:34:14.

definite. And it doesn't take long before

:34:14.:34:17.

they find the personal stash of cannabis in the bedroom.

:34:17.:34:23.

It smells stronger in there. We've come up to the bedroom that we've

:34:23.:34:26.

been allocated. Straightaway, I've gone to what he describes as the

:34:26.:34:30.

skinning-up box concealed in like a strong mints box. It's a small

:34:30.:34:33.

amount of cannabis, but probably about �20 worth. Sandwich bags as

:34:33.:34:36.

well, which most people keep them in the kitchen, but he's got them

:34:36.:34:43.

in the bedroom. Sandwich bags, that suggests to me dealing. The

:34:43.:34:47.

sandwich bags we were telling you about.

:34:47.:34:50.

It raises more suspicions for the officers.

:34:50.:34:55.

Three bags in there. 10 bags, �10 each. It's a shame there's not more,

:34:55.:34:59.

but he's obviously opened the bags, so he could have had anything up to

:34:59.:35:03.

20, 20 bags in there or anything, so we'll deal with him for that in

:35:03.:35:05.

a minute. PCs Heaton and Cooper continue to

:35:05.:35:08.

look for more drugs. PC Johnson is downstairs questioning the suspect

:35:08.:35:12.

about the bags of cannabis found in the bedroom.

:35:12.:35:19.

That's me smoke... Why didn't you tell us about it? I forgot about it.

:35:19.:35:22.

You don't forget about where your weed is though. Yeah, you don't

:35:22.:35:25.

forget where you drugs are. I bet when you wanted a spliff, you

:35:25.:35:28.

remembered where it was, didn't you? Nah. Right, well, if there's

:35:28.:35:32.

any more, tell us. I swear now, mate, you don't need to, there's no

:35:32.:35:35.

more weed. The loft is usually a good hiding

:35:35.:35:38.

place for drugs, but these officers have years of experience and know

:35:38.:35:43.

exactly where to search. The loft is empty. This time, their

:35:43.:35:47.

information has been proved wrong. There's no evidence that there's a

:35:47.:35:49.

cannabis farm here, but the officers do one final check around

:35:49.:35:54.

the house. There's a box here of teddy bears.

:35:54.:35:58.

Inside it, that's been an envelope with letters in. And in-between

:35:58.:36:04.

there, there's been a rock, believed to be. It's probably going

:36:04.:36:08.

to be crack cocaine. It looks like it's been there quite a while,

:36:08.:36:12.

because it is quite solid. But it would have to be confirmed by tests

:36:12.:36:13.

and that. Whilst downstairs, the young

:36:13.:36:16.

suspect is read his rights. You are under arrest now on

:36:16.:36:19.

suspicion of possession of cannabis and of suspicion of Class-A drugs.

:36:19.:36:24.

And you do not have to say anything... Yeah, yeah, yeah.

:36:24.:36:29.

Anything you do say may be given in evidence, all right? Yeah. The team

:36:29.:36:32.

have uncovered cannabis and what they suspect to be crack cocaine,

:36:32.:36:34.

with a combined street value of around �150.

:36:34.:36:37.

It's not a great find, but enough evidence to take the young man to

:36:37.:36:40.

the station for further questioning. Even though we didn't find the

:36:40.:36:43.

actual cannabis farm that we initially came for, cannabis was

:36:43.:36:46.

recovered from the address. That sends out a positive message to the

:36:47.:36:49.

local community to indicate that the information that they give to

:36:49.:36:59.
:36:59.:37:04.

For Britain's bravest cops, it's not just fighting violent crime

:37:04.:37:08.

that puts them on the frontline. Sometimes, they're the first

:37:08.:37:11.

emergency service on the scene. Ready to risk everything to save

:37:11.:37:17.

lives. In 2009, officers were on routine patrol in Wales when they

:37:17.:37:24.

came across thick black smoke It was about 10:50pm when PCs

:37:24.:37:27.

Gareth Evans, Lee Stephens and their colleagues, PCs Matt Andrews,

:37:27.:37:34.

Thomas Seagrim and Anthony Redwood got to the fire.

:37:35.:37:38.

It's one of those situations where it will happen so quickly and you

:37:38.:37:43.

become blinkered and focused on the job in hand.

:37:43.:37:47.

As soon as we arrived, there was smoke coming out of the windows.

:37:47.:37:50.

There were six flats all together and there were at least two flats

:37:50.:37:53.

that were occupied, one of which being a pregnant lady and a young

:37:54.:37:58.

child. The fire brigade had been called,

:37:58.:38:01.

but were still minutes away. Gareth was with his partner, Anthony,

:38:01.:38:06.

nicknamed Redders. Instantly, they knew that if they didn't act fast,

:38:06.:38:13.

lives would be lost. I ran in.

:38:13.:38:16.

Anybody here? And straightaway, it was horrific.

:38:16.:38:19.

You couldn't see anything, you couldn't see your hand held up in

:38:19.:38:22.

front of your eyes. You couldn't breathe. I ran up the stairs and

:38:22.:38:26.

when I got to the middle floor, it was evident that it was a lot more

:38:26.:38:31.

serious than I initially thought. And I knew there was another flight

:38:31.:38:37.

to go up. Gareth made his way to the top

:38:37.:38:40.

floor and searched the flat furthest from the stairs.

:38:40.:38:45.

Anybody in? It's the Police! Nobody was in there, so he quickly

:38:45.:38:48.

turned to the door of the other flat.

:38:48.:38:51.

It's the Police! As I knocked the door, at that

:38:51.:38:54.

point, it really did dawn on me how serious the situation was for the

:38:54.:39:02.

simple fact that I couldn't breathe. The thoughts going through my head

:39:02.:39:05.

at that time were, if she doesn't answer the door, there's a

:39:05.:39:10.

possibility I might pass out at this point.

:39:10.:39:13.

Meanwhile, down below, officer Lee Stephens was also battling his way

:39:13.:39:17.

through the smoke to search the flats.

:39:17.:39:21.

The smoke was already sort of gathering at ceiling height. I've

:39:21.:39:25.

never experienced smoke like that before. I held my fleece up, I held

:39:25.:39:34.

that up just to sort of protect my nose and throat.

:39:34.:39:37.

On the top floor, PC Evans was relieved to discover that the

:39:37.:39:45.

pregnant woman was still conscious. When she opened the door, there was

:39:45.:39:50.

panic and distress on her face. was starting to worry me as to how

:39:50.:39:54.

we got the baby and the mother out. It was sort of a out-of-the-frying-

:39:54.:39:57.

pan-into-the-fire scenario, because we had to take them through that

:39:57.:39:59.

staircase that we'd already been through and had already experienced

:39:59.:40:07.

how bad that actually was. I'll take the baby.

:40:07.:40:10.

I grabbed the young child that was there with her, I grabbed the

:40:10.:40:13.

blanket to cover the baby, to stop any unnecessary smoke being

:40:13.:40:19.

breathed in by him. Hold on tight, follow me!

:40:19.:40:26.

I put her hand inside my belt, I took the baby downstairs. From top

:40:26.:40:31.

to middle floor, the lady still had hold of my belt. But then suddenly,

:40:31.:40:40.

the pregnant woman let go. At that point, I could hear Redders

:40:40.:40:44.

shouting instructions at her to go downstairs. And I think she

:40:44.:40:48.

panicked at that point. The mother and baby were safe, but

:40:48.:40:51.

Lee and Redders were still in the stairwell, surrounded by thick,

:40:51.:40:57.

toxic smoke. I was the first to try and get down

:40:57.:41:01.

the communal stairs to get back out of the building. As I made my way

:41:01.:41:06.

down those stairs, I couldn't see a thing. I used to the wall on my

:41:06.:41:11.

right-hand side to feel my way down. It was when I reached the bottom of

:41:11.:41:14.

the stairwell, I went to turn what I thought was the correct way out.

:41:14.:41:17.

It wasn't, I was met by a brick wall. The disorientation I think

:41:17.:41:20.

was what frightened me more than the possibility that there was a

:41:20.:41:28.

fire in the flat near to me. But I didn't know where I was. That

:41:28.:41:32.

probably was the most frightened I have ever been. I went back up the

:41:32.:41:36.

steps to catch my breath and then made a second attempt. I managed to

:41:36.:41:41.

get myself out of the building. We were both coughing, spluttering,

:41:41.:41:45.

vomiting at the time. I don't know who it was, but we were walked to

:41:45.:41:50.

the ambulance and given oxygen. As the officers struggled to catch

:41:50.:41:53.

their breath, the fire brigade arrived. Within minutes, the

:41:53.:41:58.

billowing fire was under control. We've got a duty to protect life

:41:58.:42:02.

and property. It's officer's instinct. You just don't think

:42:02.:42:06.

about it. The police officer's head just switches on and you just deal

:42:06.:42:11.

with it. You don't think, oh, I need to be brave today. It's just

:42:11.:42:16.

what we do. That night, the quick thinking and

:42:16.:42:19.

swift actions of those courageous officers saved at least five

:42:19.:42:23.

people's lives. They all got the recognition they deserved at this

:42:23.:42:33.
:42:33.:42:34.

Next time on Britain's Bravest Cops, we hear how one courageous cop

:42:34.:42:39.

risked her life to save fellow officers in South London.

:42:39.:42:43.

This acid was so strong that it had melted through the Met vest, which

:42:43.:42:48.

is supposed to be made of really strong stuff!

:42:48.:42:51.

And we join Greater Manchester Police's elite unit in their hunt

:42:51.:42:53.

for those suspected of cleaning dirty money for the city's

:42:53.:42:58.

criminals, the money launderers. I think it's this one here, with

:42:58.:43:00.

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