Drug dealers who come up from London to supply class A narcotics on the streets of Norwich have been urged to stay away from this fine city - or face the full force of the law.

The stark warning has been issued by Detective Sergeant Robin Windsor-Waite from Norfolk Police's tactical crime unit and follows the jailing of a dealer who had been supplying drugs in part of the city.

Abdul Mumin, 20, of Green Street, London, was sentenced to three years and four months behind bars at Norwich Crown Court after he pleaded guilty to supplying class A drugs in the Sprowston Road area in July.

Det Sgt Windsor-Waite said the sentence should serve as a warning to anyone thinking about coming to Norwich to deal drugs.

He said: 'We have to get the message out there that anyone coming up is going to get caught.

'Norwich is a nice place and could be seen as a bit of a soft touch from people coming up from London but because it's a nice place it's a hostile environment for criminals to operate in and a large part of that is we have such low crime to start with and such good relationships with the public.

'The courts in Norwich regard these matters very seriously as demonstrated by the length of sentence that's been given in this incident.'

Mumin's criminal activity was quickly picked up on by concerned members of the public who contacted police which led to the force's tactical crime unit being called in.

Officers from the unit, including Detective Constable Eleanor Bull, spent just four days gathering evidence of Mumin's criminal activities as part of the operation, dubbed Bronco, before making their move.

Det Sgt Windsor-Waite, who revealed Bronco had led to other searches and arrests with other individuals awaiting trial, said: 'It first came to notice because local residents had noticed some unusual activity in the area and reported it to police.'

Members of the public were quick to contact police about unusual activities related to Mumin's drug dealing and Det Sgt Windsor -Waite said the public have a crucial role to play in cracking these sorts of cases.

He said: 'Local residents are quick to pick up on unusual activity in there area which could be an unusual amount of calls to a particular address, or frequent visits from cars at all times of the day and night. We will get that community intelligence coming through and we can respond to that very quickly and take these people out.'

Det Con Bull said there would be others waiting to fill Mumin's boots, but called on the public to help police identify those people who she added could expect the same 'lengthy sentences'.

To report drug dealing to the police call 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Always call 999 in an emergency.