Two men have been arrested and a significant quantity of weapons and cannabis seized following a police operation in Ashford, Kent.

The arrests were made after officers from Ashford’s Local Policing Team spotted a suspicious vehicle pulling onto Church Road shortly after midnight on Tuesday, 18 March. The vehicle had collided with a wall, and the occupants had fled the scene before officers arrived.

Ashford CCTV operators quickly circulated a description of one of the suspects, seen wearing a grey tracksuit, who was spotted running into a nearby street and placing an item inside a parked van. A second suspect was later identified as the driver of the crashed vehicle.

Officers conducted a search of the area and successfully detained one man on Magazine Road. A subsequent search of both vehicles revealed a large knife, a ninja star weapon, scales, grinders, and laundry bags containing a substantial amount of cannabis plants.

Both individuals were arrested on suspicion of supplying cannabis, possession of offensive weapons, and driving without insurance.

A spokesperson for Kent Police said:

“Thanks to the swift work of our local officers and support from our CCTV team, we were able to quickly track down suspects and seize dangerous weapons and illegal drugs from our streets. This is another positive result in our ongoing efforts to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour in the Ashford area.”

Both suspects have since been released on bail while investigations continue.

Anyone with further information relating to this incident is encouraged to contact Kent Police on 101, quoting the date and location of the incident, or provide information anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.