THREE men have been arrested on suspicion of drugs offences in Chippenham after police stopped a suspected dealer in the middle of the street.

Plain clothes officers stopped the 19-year-old from Corsham in Coppice Close on Monday after a member of the public reported seeing him handing packages to a number of vehicles along the road.

After a rigorous search under section 23, he was found to be in possession of cannabis, a quantity of cash and two mobile phones. A search was then carried out at a house on the road where a further 16 individually wrapped bags of cannbis were seized along with mobile phones and cash.

Two other men, aged 29 and 23, from Chippenham were also arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of cannabis. All three have been released pending an investigation.

PC James Isaac said: "This was a good result for officers who were acting on intelligence received from within our communities.

"This is a great example of the importance of our communities acting as our eyes and ears and reporting any suspicious activity in their area – we will always act on it, and on this occasion, we have been able to seize a quantity of cannabis, preventing it from reaching the streets of Wiltshire."

Anyone who suspects drug activity in their area should call Wiltshire Police on 101.