THREE men are in custody after phones, drugs and more than £1,200 in cash were seized during police stops across Southend. 

Officers were in the city on yesterday as part of an operation targeting organised immigration crime and drug-related criminality in the county.

A vehicle was stopped close to Cherry Orchard Way at around 11pm last night following concerns around it being linked with drugs offences in south Essex.

When officers searched the driver, 31 wraps of suspected class A drugs were located along with £200 in cash and two mobile phones.

A 31-year-old man remains in custody after being arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs.

Later in the evening a second suspicious vehicle was identified at a McDonald's drive-through in Southend. The motorist, a 28-year-old man, was arrested for drug supply offences and his mobile phone was seized.

Less than 10 minutes later, police arrested a third man close to Eastern Avenue, who was in possession of more than £1,000 in cash.

The three men remain in custody.

Superintendent Phil Stinger said: “We remain committed to tackling organised criminality, including drug dealing offences in our county.

“Operations such as these allow our officers to target those suspected in these offences and take them off the streets, subsequently stopping drugs from getting in the hands of vulnerable people.

“Enquiries following these arrests remain ongoing.”