One man arrested and knives taken off streets in Luton, Leighton Buzzard and Houghton Regis weapons sweep

A man has been arrested on suspicion of firearms offences as Bedfordshire Police continues its efforts to tackle violent crime in Luton and Leighton Buzzard.

Community officers carried out weapons sweeps in Houghton Regis and Leighton Buzzard this week as the force aims to get weapons off the streets.

Meanwhile, this morning (September 23) the force’s Boson guns and gangs team executed a warrant in Crawley Green Road, Luton.

A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of possession of firearms offences and remains in custody for questioning.

Police officers also joined colleagues from the Central Bedfordshire Council community safety partnership to carry out weapons sweeps.

Yesterday (September 22) the team worked in Houghton Regis and focused on the Parkside Drive area, while today (September 23) the team concentrated its efforts in Leighton Buzzard.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Pugh from Bedfordshire Police said: “Our work to tackle violent crime and get weapons off the streets does not stop.

“A week of action earlier this year saw us recover more than 1,800 weapons from our weapons bins around the county, while over the past year our dedicated Sparkler gang patrols have taken 13 knives and firearms off the streets.

“Levels of recorded serious youth violence also dropped to their lowest level this year in August.

“We will continue to do all we can to get weapons off the streets, as well as working with our partners like local authorities and the Violence and Exploitation Reduction Unit to give people opportunities and show them a better path.”

For more information about Bedfordshire Police’s response to knife crime click here

You can find out more about the Bedfordshire Violence and Exploitation Reduction Unit on bedsveru.org