Squalid living conditions for workers concealed under a rotten makeshift staircase. Illegal goods hidden in walls. Reports of underage girls sold booze and sexually abused. Tens of thousands of counterfeit cigarettes, vapes and hand-rolled tobacco tucked in the back of stores.

These were just a few of the discoveries made by Suffolk Police as they stormed into high street businesses used as fronts for organised crime groups (OCGs) in November 2025, targeting a mix of convenience stores, fast food takeaways, sweet shops, barber shops and nail bars. “It is shocking to see this exploitation happening in plain sight,” said the county’s police and crime commissioner Tim Passmore, as news of the early morning raids broke.

But it was only the tip of the iceberg.