Seventeen arrested in Teesside police raids

Image caption, About 130 officers were involved in the raids across parts of Teesside

Police have carried out a series of early morning raids targeting those suspected of being involved in organised crime.

Cleveland Police said 17 people had been arrested during the operation - involving about 130 officers including some from the National Crime Agency - across South Bank, Grangetown and Eston, near Middlesbrough, on Monday.

It is part of a high-profile response to a crash on the nearby A66 last month which came at the end of a police pursuit and left two officers dead.

Five men died also died when their Volkswagen Passat went the wrong way down the road and hit a Cleveland Police armed response vehicle heading in the opposite direction.

The force said Monday's raids had seen people arrested on suspicion of various offences including drugs and assault.