Exclusive: Major drugs bust operation at ITC Catterick results in soldier's arrest

Military and civilian police officers swooped on an Army base in North Yorkshire where recruits undergo basic training in a drug bust operation involving four different agencies.

Described by Army sources as a "proactive misuse of drugs operation", the activity took place on Thursday and resulted in the arrest of an individual.

BFBS Forces News understands the individual arrested is a member of staff in one of the recruit training companies, part of Infantry Training Centre, Catterick.

The operation included personnel from the Royal Military Police, Defence Serious Crime Command, MOD Police and civilian officers from North Yorkshire Police.

Pinpointed to ITC Catterick – one of the Army's training locations for Phase One recruits – the operation included specialist dog units, trained to sniff out illicit substances.

This operation also saw all personnel on camp – several hundred soldiers – participate in a mandatory drug test, known as a CDT (compulsory drug testing).

The results of those tests are currently not known, as it takes several days of laboratory work – led by the MOD's internal drugs-hunting team – and may yet lead to further action.

The MOD has a policy of compulsory drug testing, which seeks to reinforce the message that drug use is unacceptable among service personnel.

In October, four members of the British Army were imprisoned for their part in a cocaine ring worth almost £100,000.

Rifleman Claudius Scott, Rfn Ryan Saedi, Rfn Ashleigh Walker and Lance Corporal Bradley Hesketh, who were all part of 5th Battalion, The Rifles, were sentenced to a combined 13 years and three months in prison at Bulford Military Court.

Zero tolerance

The Army has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to drug misuse, with those caught in possession or failing a compulsory drug test liable to face discharge.