POLICE officers have warned that people involved in supplying drugs on the streets of Ryedale will see their world implode if they continue to deal in illegal substances.

At a recent Ryedale Area committee meeting, Inspector Andy Everitt, of Ryedale police, said that the force would be continuing to crackdown on dealers and suppliers in the area as they enforce a strict no drugs policy.

“These people who are organising street dealers, their world will implode in a couple of months’ time,” said Inspector Everitt.

The zero-tolerance policy comes following a worrying trend of people dealing crack cocaine in Norton last year, which resulted in a rise in the number of house burglaries in the town during October.

One offender, who admitted to having a £150 a day cocaine habit, was arrested and given an 18-month prison sentence last year following an early guilty plea.

Councillor Lindsay Burr, for Malton and Norton, thanked the police for tackling the problem quickly.

She said: “It has been noticed by a considerable amount of people in Norton how swiftly and quickly you have dealt with that.”

Despite the increase in burglary offences due to the issue, the number of burglaries in other buildings fell by 28 offences from 168 offences last year to 140 and the overall crime level in Ryedale is at the second lowest level ever recorded as of February 27, this year.

Last year was recorded as having the lowest number of reported crimes, according to Insp Everitt. Anti-social behaviour has also fallen by six per cent. However, metal theft was said to still be a problem for Ryedale – particularly in the more isolated parts of the district, such as the rural areas above Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside and Pickering.