Police in Chippenham seized knives, nunchucks and a bow and arrow set when they raided five homes as part of a clampdown on violent and drugs-related crime yesterday morning.

More than 20 officers from Chippenham and Trowbridge, as well as dog units and an armed response team, simultaneously swooped on five homes across the town in a hunt for drug users linked with London and Bristol-based suppliers.

At a ground floor flat in Greenway Court, a Chippenham man in his 20s was arrested on suspicion of possession of controlled drugs. Officers also seized tablets and items connected with drug dealing.

The man was taken to the Melksham custody unit and the tablets will undergo forensic testing.

A 50-year-old man from Wood Lane was given an £80 fixed penalty notice after police found him in possession of a small amount of herbal cannabis, which was seized along with a pair of nunchucks.

The team that stormed a flat in Charter Road found a computer which was suspected as being stolen, as well as a large number of needles and paraphernalia suggesting drugs are regularly used in the property. The computer was seized and investigations are ongoing.

A hoard of weapons was confiscated from an address in Kington Langley, where police found a bow and arrow, Samurai swords and other knives, while at a house in Moorlands officers found evidence that Class A drugs had been present, with items including needles and foils.

Acting inspector Mark Gale said: “We set up Operation Empennage to tackle a problem where information had been received that drug dealers from Bristol and London were visiting Chippenham.”

So far police have seized drugs worth £3,500 and £1,100 in cash.

“Having conducted the disruption phase of the operation where we were stop-checking people and gathering information, we carried out a series of five warrants at addresses where intelligence suggested drug use was continuing to take place.

“The results of those warrants have confirmed that our suspicions were correct, however, what they show is that there is a far less ready supply of class A drugs in Chippenham than there was prior to this operation taking place.

“Our intelligence indicates that the drug dealers from out of town are no longer operating in Chippenham and these warrants tend to have confirmed our belief.”