Bustling seaside town was once 'UK's Magaluf' but is now overrun with drug users

07 May 2023 , 21:35

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Bustling seaside town was once 'UK's Magaluf' but is now overrun with drug users

A popular seaside town once dubbed the "British Magaluf" faces a new challenge to its reputation - as it's now one of the prettiest drug hotspots in the country.

Newquay, in Cornwall, is a bustling destination for young tourists in the summer, who pack its bars and enjoy its turquoise waters and golden sands.

However this presented problems as it became dubbed the party capital - but now it faces a dangerous drug epidemic. County lines gangs reportedly flood its shores with heroin, crack, cocaine and cannabis.

Devon and Cornwall Police seized 18.7kg of cocaine in the year to March 2022 – up from 16.2kg the year before - while ketamine seized rose from 0.3kg in 2021 to 1.8kg last year, Home Office figures show.

Devon and Cornwall Police carried out raids across Newquay recently (Devon and Cornwall Police)

A teenager last week suffered a seizure in a Newquay nightclub during an event aimed at 16 and 17-year-olds, which police believe was "drug induced", The Sun reports.

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Sweeping raids were held across the town and nearby areas of St Austell, Truro and Penzance last month, in which 31 people were arrested. It was a landmark operation to crack down on criminal gangs operating from as far away as Merseyside.

Dave Farrow, who moved from Norfolk to Newquay in 1983 and worked as a club doorman when the licensing laws changed to allow pubs to remain open into the early hours, said he has seen huge change in town.

Drugs found in nearby Penzance during Operation Medusa this year (Devon and Cornwall Police)

"In those days people would often come out at 10pm or later, they’d be already drunk and wanting to party, and it would get quite messy. It was the party capital at that point and the streets were packed with groups of young people," Dave, who now runs Karma Surfboard shop, told The Sun.

"As a doorman I saw all sorts. I remember opening a toilet cubicle, the floor would be flooded in urine, but they’d be snorting cocaine and kneeling in it, because they were so out of it. Now the drug problem here is different. There are areas of Newquay which have become synonymous with drugs."

Stephen Walker, who owns the fishing and angling shop Sling Your Hook, says he has seen people taking drugs and doing drug deals on the streets of Newquay.

But Wes Roux argues authorities are tackling the drug problem.

Newquay is a bustling destination in the summer months (Getty Images)

Wes, who rents out beach huts, said the challenge of teenagers using Newquay to party was far greater. In those days, the settlement was overrun with large groups of young people, often on hen or stag dos, or celebrating the end of their GCSEs or A-levels.

In 2009 though, police and council chiefs joined forces to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, banning T-shirts with rude slogans and X-rated inflatables popular with hen and stag dos.

Now police intend to repeat the same work to continue to change Newquay's reputation. Devon and Cornwall Constabulary will use "direct financial investment" to again clean its streets.

Police clamped down on anti-social behaviour in the town around 10 years ago (Getty Images)

Alison Hernandez, police and crime commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: "These operations will continue with my full support, which includes direct financial investment, so our communities and the dealers who seek to exploit our most vulnerable citizens understand that this evil trade will not be tolerated here."

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The County Lines problem appeared quickly in around 2017, but now the National Crime Agency estimates more than half of the areas targeted by big city county lines dealers are coastal areas like Newquay.

The overall crime rate in Newquay in 2022 was 69 crimes per 1,000 people, which is 73 per cent higher than the county-wide average of 40 per 1,000 residents.

Bradley Jolly