TLDR Police seized more than £110,000 in cash, gold bars, coins and jewellery during raids in Sheffield and Doncaster. Sixteen illegal betting terminals were found and three people were arrested on 4 and 5 August. Wider searches uncovered stolen motorbikes, counterfeit tobacco and a cannabis growing operation. Four more arrests followed as police expanded their search across Sheffield. The Gambling Commission says illegal gambling can be linked to other criminal activity and harm vulnerable people.
Police in South Yorkshire seized more than £110,000 in cash, gold bars, coins and jewellery during raids on suspected illegal gambling operations. The raids took place in Sheffield and Doncaster on 4 and 5 August.
The operation brought together South Yorkshire Police, the Gambling Commission, the Yorkshire and Humber Regional and Organised Crime Unit, local councils and Immigration Enforcement. Officers worked across several locations over the two days.
Sixteen illegal betting terminals were found at properties on London Road in Sheffield and Silver Street in Doncaster. The terminals were being used to run unlicensed gambling activity.
Three people were arrested during the gambling focused raids. The arrests related to suspected immigration offences, possession of a bladed article and gambling offences.
Wider Criminal Activity Uncovered
The investigation did not stop at the gambling premises. Further warrants were carried out across Sheffield on 5 August as part of two linked operations named Duxford and Snaresbrook.
At a property on Norton Avenue, officers recovered three motorbikes believed to have been stolen. The vehicles were taken as evidence.
A search on Glover Road turned up more than 2,200 packs of counterfeit tobacco. Police estimated the value of the tobacco at around £11,000.
Officers also searched a property on Chesterfield Road, where they found 279 cannabis plants at different stages of growth. The scale pointed to an