Following a swoop involving uniformed and CID officers, police in north England found no evidence that any of the sites they investigated were involved in processing stolen scrap metal. Sergeant John McIntosh commented: "There have been 20 thefts of metal, mainly lead and copper, over the last 30 days in South Cumbria. We visited three sites in Barrow and we went through their records. This is a good result as it shows local firms are doing things correctly."