West Mercia Police has secured the forfeiture of more than £275,000 from three businesses under investigation for illegal waste activity, as part of a wider probe spanning Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire. The force says further crimes have come to light during the investigation, additional assets are still being reviewed, and a separate money laundering inquiry remains active, underlining the scale and complexity of the case.

The investigation followed the arrest of two men at an address in Drakes Broughton, Worcestershire, in January, where six firearms and around £18,000 in cash were seized. A separate site, a farm in Peopleton, yielded electrical goods suspected to be linked to money laundering, along with roughly £60,000 in cash and a suspected stolen car. Police say the case continues due to its complexity and the number of suspects involved, while the Environment Agency confirmed it has already acted at several Worcestershire sites and would pursue "robust enforcement action" wherever criminal activity is found.