Four men are expected to appear in court on the British bases in February after being caught in possession of drugs as a result of the bases’ police’s “Operation Santa Claus”.

“Operation Santa Claus” was a police crackdown on crime in the villages of Trachoni and Ypsonas, on the Akrotiri base, with a focus on the supply of illegal drugs, during December and January.

A total of 62 arrests were made on the Akrotiri base during the operation for what the bases’ police described as “various other offences”, including the possession of stolen property and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, with some of those arrestees having been found to be in possession of small quantities of drugs at the time of their arrest.

The raids which led to the arrest of the four who are to appear in court saw police officers seize 50 ecstasy pills, 50 grams of MDMA, and a “small amount of cannabis”, with the drugs estimated to have a combined street value of around €2,500.

Of the four, one is a Cypriot national, two are Slovakian nationals, and one is a Belarusian national, and all four were based in Trachoni.

Constandinos Petrou, Akrotiri police’s deputy divisional commander said that “the tireless work of law enforcement is vital in combatting this plague, through enforcement, fostering prevention”.

“Drugs destroy the foundations of our communities, damaging lives, and their futures,” he added.