VOLUNTEERS joined police in a major operation to hit travelling criminals coming through North Yorkshire with five people arrested and four vehicles seized.

Teams from Richmond Border Watch, Stokesley Watch and Thirsk Vale watch took to the roads alongside local Safer Neighbourhood officers and specialist police units across Hambleton and Richmondshire as part of an Operation Hawk event which tracks and disrupts travelling criminals.

Focusing on the northern A1, A66 and A19 corridors, and minor roads in between, officers and volunteers worked together to target travelling criminals stopping 32 vehicles.

Four people, two aged 17, a 23 year-old and a 32 year-old were arrested on suspicion of money-laundering after a BMW 5 Series car was stopped on the A1 near Scotch Corner. The driver, one of the 17-year-olds, was also arrested on suspicion of driving without a licence and insurance. A quantity of cash and gift cards, as well as the vehicle itself, were seized. All four are from the Luton area and are in custody.

A 45-year-old man from Stockton-on-Tees was arrested after a Vauxhall Viva car was stopped on the B1264 near Yarm. He was charged with driving while disqualified, having no insurance and no MOT. He will appear at Northallerton Magistrates Court on November 30.

Two other uninsured vehicles were seized.

Sergeant Stuart Grainger, of Leyburn Police, said: “The support of Watch scheme volunteers was invaluable, with 22 people giving up their own time to protect their communities by acting as the eyes and ears of the police.”

Assistant Chief Constable Paul Kennedy, who leads Operation Hawk, said North Yorkshire, the largest single county police force in the country, with 6,000 miles of roads, is the safest place in England.

However, the area borders seven other counties, including four with the highest crime rate per 1,000 population. Around 20 per cent of detected crime is committed by criminals travelling from neighbouring areas.

He added: "We launched Operation Hawk to send a clear message to travelling criminals that if you come to North Yorkshire to commit crime, we will catch you.

"Our area is one of the safest places in the country, and we are determined to keep it that way, so we will keep up the tough stance.

"Rural communities can be reassured that these operations will continue until travelling criminals get the message that they are not welcome in North Yorkshire."