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Seven Everton fans were arrested when police raided two coaches destined for a Premier League clash against Cardiff tonight.

Officers boarded two supporters buses on Tuesday afternoon at around 2pm shortly after they had begun their journey to Wales.

During the raids, that involved Matrix police, the dogs section and Road Policing Officers, a quantity of suspect cocaine and cannabis was found.

One coach was stopped on Bowring Road and the driver was arrested on suspicion of drug driving.

Two men were arrested on suspicion of possession of cocaine, three men were arrested on suspicion of possession of cannabis and a youth was reported for possession of criminal proper (cash) and possession of cannabis.

A second raid on Electric Avenue saw one man arrested on suspicion of possession of cannabis, and eight wraps of white powder and 10 bags of suspected cannabis were seized following a search of the vehicle.

A total of 15 cases of alcohol were also recovered.

Both coaches were able to continue their journeys to Cardiff following the arrests and seizures.

The raids took place as part of a preplanned operation after fans were involved in a number of incidents during recent away matches.

On February 9, four Liverpool men were arrested after a fight broke minutes after Everton match against Watford.

The incident left two men needing hospital treatment.

In January, an Everton fan was slashed in the face ahead of their clash with Millwall.

Everton fans became involved in a large scale brawl ahead of the game, while being escorted to the stadium by police.

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Inspector Mark Keenan, from Matrix Operations , said: “The arrest of seven people this afternoon is the result of a lot of meticulous, hard work by our investigation teams.

“We are investigating the possibility that the consumption of excess alcohol and drugs on coaches have been contributory factors in recent incidents of disorder, and today’s activity is the direct result of that work.

“It has been supported by partners including Everton Football Club and the Driving Standards Agency, and its primary aim is to protect people of all ages who want to go to football matches to support their team free from the fear of violence and disorder, and to ensure law-abiding citizens including families are not exposed to the taking of illicit drugs.

“The overwhelming majority of fans conduct themselves with dignity and are a credit to the city, and the vast majority of bus operators are compliant with legislation put in place to guarantee the safety of all passengers.

"Their good name should not be tarnished by a minority who do not uphold the same standards of behaviour.”

Insp Keenan added: “Class A drugs blight the lives of the people who become addicted to them.

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"Some addicts can then go on to fund their habit through acquisitive crime, including burglary, theft and robbery, and this has a negative impact on the lives of people living in the communities where drug dealers and organised crime groups operate.

“Wherever suspected drug dealers attempt to ply their trade, we will root them out.

"They simply do not care about the impact their illicit trade has on decent members of the public – their sole concern is the money they can make, and we share the will of the community to put a stop to that.

“As well as gathering our own intelligence for today’s activity, we have acted on intelligence provided by the community and we continue to appeal to anyone with information about the illegal possession and dealing of drugs to contact police so that we can take action and continue to make Merseyside a safer place.”

Anyone with information about drug dealing is asked to contact Merseyside Police social media desk via Twitter @MerPolCC or Facebook Merseyside Police CC.

You can also call 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information .