POLICE arrested 23 wanted fugitives within 48 hours in connection with unsolved crimes including burglary, assault and drugs offences.

The arrests, of two women and 21 men, came during a dedicated week of action in Newcastle and Gateshead by Northumbria Police's central harm reduction team.

Officers targeted some of the highest risk offenders in Tyneside on Monday and Tuesday and say they will continue to look for more suspects the rest of the week.

Detective Superintendent Brad Howe is overseeing the activity and has warned other fugitives to expect a knock on the door.

He said: “There has been some fantastic proactive police work on show this week in a bid to locate some of our most wanted suspects.

“A team of dedicated officers were given one objective as the children return to school this week – bring in those high-risk fugitives.

“They have done a stellar job and visited dozens of addresses until they’ve located these suspects."

He said the force will not rest until other wanted individuals are in custody.

He added: "If you know you’re wanted, then do the right thing and hand yourself in.

“If you don’t then you’ll have to keep looking over your shoulder – and you can expect a knock at your door soon.”

Anyone who knows the whereabouts of an individual wanted by police call 101 or report the information online at the ‘Tell Us Something’ pages of the Northumbria Police website or by emailing central.intelligence@northumbria.pnn.police.uk.