A YOUTH from Warrington has been charged with modern slavery and drug supply offences by transport police officers.

Following an extensive county lines investigation, British Transport Police has charged three boys and one man.

The 16-year-old boy from Warrington has been charged alongside two 17-year-old boys – from north London and Southend – and 21-year-old Declan Sherriff, of Varley Drive in Twickenham.

They were arrested in June and August last year on suspicion of supplying drugs and modern slavery offences, and have this month been served with charges.

These come after two teenagers aged 13 and 14 were found at Brighton railway station trying to return to London without tickets in June last year.

They had been reported as missing and were believed to have been exploited by county lines gangs.

A complex investigation concerning a conspiracy to supply class A drugs and the human trafficking of children, via a County Line from London into Brighton, was launched.

Just nine days after the teenagers were found, arrest warrants were successfully executed.

DS Gareth Williams said: “Achieving 16 modern slavery charges through a single investigation represents outstanding work by my officers.

“These charges have almost doubled the number we had achieved since the taskforce was established in 2019, bringing our total to an impressive 38 modern slavery charges connected to illegal drug supply.

“Successfully securing criminal charges for such serious offences is down to the dedication of my officers and their tenacity in seeking justice for the two exploited teenagers that we found in Brighton last year.

“Ensuring those involved received critical safeguarding interventions and support, my team demonstrated that it is dedicated to identifying vulnerability and ensuring the safety of all, across the rail network.

“These charges are a significant step towards disrupting county lines activity and demonstrating that the railway network will always be a hostile environment for drug suppliers to operate in.”