Police at the scene of a separate incident on Mutley Plain (file image)(Image: Bill Martin)

Police bash down Plymouth shop door in dramatic raid

Three men have been charged following a series of searches

by · PlymouthLive

Three men are set to appear at court today after an operation which saw officers from the Metropolitan Police and Plymouth police carry out simultaneous raids at properties in the two cities.

Metropolitan Police officer forced entry into a property in Walthamstow at 7am Monday morning [September 30] and arrested two men aged 30 and 34.

At the same time officers from Plymouth's Proactive Policing Team bashed down the door of a property above the Bucharest minimart store in Mutley Plain where they arrested two men aged 33 and 23.

A short while later officers attended Edgar Terrace and arrested two men aged 30 and 22 as they approached a car.

Searches of the properties and vehicles resulted in the seizure of around £30,000 in cash and a quantity of suspected class A cocaine. Officers also seized a Kia Sportage from Edgar Terrace and a Nissan Qashqai from Mutley Plain.

(Image: Devon and Cornwall Police)

The men in Plymouth were all taken to Charles Cross police station custody suite for interview while the men arrested at the Walthamstow property were taken to a London station.

Late yesterday, three men - one from the London address, one from the Mutley Plain property and one arrested in Edgar Terrace - have all been charged while the remaining three men were released on police bail.

Arline Nezaj, aged 30 of Orford Road, Walthamstow has been charged with conspiracy to supply class A cocaine and possession of criminal property - namely cash. Bekim Hilaj, aged 33 of Mutley Plain has been charged with conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.

(Image: Devon and Cornwall Police)

Halil Doda, aged 30, originally from Birmingham, was charged with conspiracy to supply class A cocaine and possession of criminal property - namely cash.

All three have been remanded into custody to appear at Plymouth Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

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