Drugs and guns seized by police

The dawn raids took nine months to plan and involved 300 officers

Drugs worth £2.5m destined for the streets of south Wales have been recovered by Gwent Police in a joint operation with five English forces.

More than £500,000 in cash and four guns were also seized by officers in a series of dawn raids.

Operation Reptile had been planned for nine months before 250 officers from the Gwent force took part in a series of dawn raids on Wednesday.

Twenty three people were arrested and seven were charged with drugs offences.

The UK-wide operation involved officers from Thames Valley, Essex, Gloucester, West Mercia, and Wiltshire forces - a total of 300 officers.

In Gwent, a haul of cash thought to total more than £500,000 was also recovered in used £20 and £50 notes.

Gwent Police said more arrests were likely and restraining orders had been prepared to seize another £3.75m of assets which had been accumulated by the gang.

Up to £500,000 in used notes was seized, along with four guns

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Webber, who led Operation Reptile, said: "We initially focused on an individual, but quickly realised that their sphere of influence extended throughout southern Wales, southern England and the West Midlands.

"This operation has yet again shown that the police and Gwent Police force in particular, have the resources and the ability to successfully investigate organised crime at the highest level, using both conventional methods and tactics that are at the very cutting edge of police technology."

South Wales Police also seized drugs with a street value of £400,000 after a series of raids.

Ecstasy, cocaine and amphetamines were found after more than a dozen properties in the south Wales area, and two in England, were raided.