More than 300 people arrested and 90 weapons taken off the streets in massive police knife crime crackdown

Over 300 people have been arrested and 90 weapons have been seized as part of a crackdown on knife crime in Greater Manchester, new figures have shown.

As part of Operation Venture, specialist officers were deployed to violent crime hotspots and since late autumn last year, there have been over 317 arrests, 311 stop searches, with masses of drugs and weapons seized.

The latest figures for Greater Manchester over the last 12 months show that Greater Manchester Police recorded 3,732 knife crimes, which is 688 fewer than the previous year - a reduction of 15.2%.

READ MORE: The tragic secret kept by boy, 16, with 'heart of gold' which led to his death

READ MORE: The top stories across the M.E.N. today

Other serious violence offences, including robbery, was down to 35,397, a 4% reduction from 37,092.

In September this year, a further 30 people have been arrested as part of the operation. Over 90 weapons were taken off the streets and 125 weapons sweeps were carried out where officers search for hidden or discarded weapons.

The team received over 660 intelligence submissions, which are used to build the picture around violent crime hotspots across Greater Manchester, and are used to determine where officers are deployed.

GMP have said they are enforcing a 'zero-tolerance' approach to those caught carrying knives, and have said they worked closely with a range of partners – including the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit - to help target the root cause of violence on Greater Manchester's streets.

There has been over 130 partnership referrals which directs young and first-time offenders into support services and officers have also made 124 disruption visits to known offenders to ensure they are complying fully with