A store in Peterborough has been closed by police following concerns around drug dealing, exploitation, and links to organised crime.

The closure notice was served on Constanta Shop, 272 Lincoln Road, Millfield, on July 22 following a warrant carried out by the Neighbourhood Support Team (NST) where drugs and weapons were found, resulting in two men being arrested.

The application was initially contested by the owners on July 24, but a full closure order was granted at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday August 7.

The convenience store is now closed until 7 November this year to all people, at all times, except for the emergency services, employees of the local authority and the landlord.

Any breach of the order is a criminal offence which could result in imprisonment of up to three months, a fine, or both.

Sergeant Paul Delmer, from the NST, said: “This closure order has been carried out as part of ‘Alliance’, which is a campaign to regenerate Millfield by tackling criminality in the area in a bid to make it an all-round better place for the community.

“It involves us working with partner agencies and residents in the area to reduce the levels of organised criminality through a variety of targeted operations and policing tactics.

“I hope the closure order and arrests shows the community that we are committed to tackling their concerns and will continue to police this robustly through regular compliance checks and taking action against anyone found to be in breach.”

Anyone with information about the order being breached should contact police online via the reporting form or webchat. Those without internet access should call 101.

Information about Alliance can be found on the force’s dedicated Alliance webpage.