NINE men were arrested on suspicion of theft following reports of suspicious activity at a Snailwell scrapyard.

Police were called to reports that a number of people had been spotted at the site in Fordham Road shortly before midnight yesterday (Monday).

Officers attended but the men made off. The helicopter was called in to assist with the search and nine men were arrested a short time later.

The men, three aged 19, and others aged 20, 22, 24, 26, 46 and 59, and all from the Kent area, remain in custody at Parkside Police Station.

Last week, Cambridgeshire police launched a crackdown on metal theft called Operation Magnet. As part of the operation they are asking scrap metal dealers to sign up to a new scheme which commits them to making it easier for police to trace sellers of stolen metal but will not inhibit those who operate legitimately.