A TOTAL of ten people were arrested during raids on homes in York and Selby, police revealed today.

But one York woman, a nurse, said she could not understand why her home was targeted

Police say criminals were put on notice that there will be nowhere for them to hide from the crackdown on stolen property and drug-related crime, codenamed Operation Chirl.

Nine search warrants were executed, with arrests being made for suspicion of possession of drugs, handling stolen goods, theft, burglary and breach of bail. Four people were arrested on warrants and a further two were issued with cannabis warnings.

Police forced doors open with battering rams and searched properties with a sniffer dog in areas including Clifton, in York, and Flaxley Road, Barlby Road and Church Hill, in Selby.

Acting Chief Inspector Glyn Payne said: "I think it went very well and I'm very pleased with it.

"We managed to execute nine search warrants and to arrest ten people for a variety of offences. This is the first of several initiatives we'll be running in the near future."

But York woman Sandra Gallagher, 46, of Peter Hill Drive, Clifton, said she had no idea why her home was targeted. She was at work and her two sons and five-year-old grandson were in bed when officers forced her door with a warrant to search for drugs.

She said the only time she had ever encountered Class A drugs was during the course of duty when she worked as an auxiliary nurse.

"I'm not happy at all," she said. "I'm not a drug dealer, I've never been a drug dealer in all my life and if I was I wouldn't bother going out to work. They wouldn't find drugs or stolen property here.

"I'm worried I might lose my job over this."

Acting Chief Inspector Glyn Payne said nobody had been arrested at Mrs Gallagher's address.

He said: "All our operations are based on current intelligence which is verified and as a result of that intelligence we made an application to the magistrates to issue a search warrant which we duly executed."

The men arrested in connection with stolen property have been bailed pending further inquiries. The men arrested in connection with possession have been dealt with by way of cannabis warnings or drug referral schemes.

Updated: 10:35 Friday, July 30, 2004