London police nabs over 650 suspects in week-long crackdown

More than 650 suspects have been arrested during a week-long police crackdown on violent crime and drugs in London, local media reported Tuesday.

Prolific robbers, knife carriers and drug dealers were targeted by police officers using stop and search, 2,000 weapon sweeps and knife arches in the city's hotspots during the Operation Sceptre from March 23 to March 29, said the London-based Evening Standard newspaper.

Uniformed and plain-clothes police also hunted down their most wanted criminals, some of whom were unusually at home with families due to the lockdown.

Drugs, cash, a cannabis factory, Zombie knives and hammers were found when police officers raided 65 properties in the operation, according to the report.

The force has been tested by sickness as the capital continues to be the center of the current COVID-19 epidemic. But a huge drop in crime, especially robbery and burglary, is aiding officers who remain on the beat.

Some of London's most prolific, high-harm offenders have been apprehended, and dangerous weapons which could have potentially ended up in the wrong hands have been removed from our streets, said Metropolitan Police Commander Jane Connors.

The British Office for National Statistics (ONS) said earlier this year that 15,080 knife offences were recorded in the capital during the 12 months to the end of last September.

The ONS data showed a 7 percent rise in knife offending across England and Wales to 44,771 blade crimes, an average of more than 120 incidents a day.