The ECHO joined Merseyside Police as hundreds of officers swarmed unsuspecting area

Unsuspecting areas of Liverpool were woken to the deafening boom of Merseyside Police battering rams

15:12, 11 Dec 2025Updated 15:19, 11 Dec 2025

It was dark and silent, with a chill in the air, as an army of police vehicles blue-lighted their way through the city[1], headed for one destination. If you told me at 6.20am that Merseyside Police were preparing for war, I'd have believed you.

The calmness of this December morning was shattered by the "60" strong fleet of police vehicles[2] as they rolled into Knowsley[3] to "undertake a sustained and relentless offensive against criminals operating in our local communities". The sight had people stopping in their tracks as the sea of blue lights silently made their way towards their unexpecting targets.

Promptly, at 7am, carrying out the large-scale policing operation, codenamed Operation Vanguard, in Stockbridge Village and Huyton,[4] made up of more than 250 police officers, battered their way through the doors.

The deafening sound of the battering ram and saws, waking the unsuspecting occupants and neighbours. It is understood the operation was one of the biggest the force has seen in 15 years.

Huddled inside a Matrix van among an army of Merseyside Police[5], the ECHO[6] joined the operation this morning. Told to meet at Merseyside Police Headquarters at 5.30am, we shortly descended onto Huyton[7] and Stockbridge Village in scenes I can only describe as a war on crime.

Teams were deployed onto a number of addresses to carry out warrants.

We watched officers smash front doors, before teams entered and located two occupants in the upstairs of a house, in a quiet residential street, that neighbours described as a "living nightmare". This raid was just one of 16 warrants carried out this morning.

Other teams began land and underwater searches. Merseyside Police says the crackdown comes after recent shootings in the area including the attempted murder of a child in Kirkby[8], where a 15-year-old schoolboy was sentences and two others were arrested after an 18-year-old lost his hand in Huyton after being attacked at a house party in Huyton in September.

As of 11.45am the force announced that 27 people had been arrested[9] so far as police carried out warrants, roadside checks, and land and underwater searches.

Those detained were arrested on suspicion of offences including:

• Supply of Class A and B drugs
• Sexual assault
• Possession of indecent images
• Domestic assault
• Drug driving
• Drink driving
• Theft
• Criminal damage

A quantity of cocaine, cannabis, e-bikes and watches have also been seized by officers and will be forensically examined.

Chief Constable Rob Carden said: "The scale and impact of today's operation should leave criminals in absolutely no doubt - we are here, we are watching, and if you are involved in criminality you can expect a knock on your door.

"This is one of the largest operations of this type that we have conducted in many years and demonstrates very clearly our contempt for those involved in criminality.

"This morning we have seen doors of suspects going in and throughout the day cars will be stopped, undergrowth and canals searched and there will have been significant numbers of officers on patrols in those areas the public tell us have been harmed by criminality.

That work will continue throughout the day, and with colleagues from North West Regional Organised Crime Unit and British Transport Police, Knowsley Council[10] and other partners in this unified endeavour to tackle criminality.

"Today's action reinforces our commitment to cracking down on crime and putting offenders behind bars, and we will not stop until justice has been served.

"The focus of all of this is the protection of the public, and a vital part of today is the support and safeguarding we provide for vulnerable victims, alongside our partners including Knowsley Council and local charities and support services.

"Yesterday marked the end of 16 Days of activism across the world to end violence against women and girls, but our work to eliminate an issue that causes harm across Merseyside goes on 365 days a year and bringing offenders who hurt women and girls to justice is a key part of today's activity."

CC Carden added: "While today is all about making a clear statement of intent in our fight to tackle criminality, I want to stress that the activity we are undertaking today goes on right across Merseyside 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year.

"We are stop searching suspects every day, conducting warrants at their homes, searching their properties and stopping their cars.

"Criminals have no right to conduct their offending here in Merseyside and we will go on disrupting them every day so that they are left in no doubt that they are not welcome here.

"The people of Merseyside have been a huge support in these efforts, and I ask that you keep telling us where criminals are operating, where they are storing and carrying drugs and weapons, and we will using all the powers and tools at our disposal to take robust action."

Knowsley Council leader Cllr Graham Morgan said: "We know from speaking to our residents that feeling safe in their homes and communities is a huge priority for them.

"We know how much it matters to people that's why we are so committed to working with our Police colleagues to bring to justice those who disrupt the lives of our residents.

The message is clear from Knowsley - if you break the law, there will be consequences."

If you have any information which could help Merseyside Police to prevent criminality in your area, let the force know so it can take action and ensure our communities can enjoy their local areas safely.

If you have any information call 101 or contact police on social media @MerPolCC.

You can also report information via the police website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/[11]

Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously[12] In an emergency always call 999.

References

1. ^ army of police vehicles blue-lighted their way through the city (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
2. ^ "60" strong fleet of police vehicles (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
3. ^ Knowsley (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
4. ^ large-scale policing operation, codenamed Operation Vanguard, in Stockbridge Village and Huyton, (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
5. ^ an army of Merseyside Police (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
6. ^ ECHO (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
7. ^ Huyton (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
8. ^ Kirkby (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
9. ^ the force announced that 27 people had been arrested (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
10. ^ Knowsley Council (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
11. ^ https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ (tracking.vuelio.co.uk)
12. ^ https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously (tracking.vuelio.co.uk)