Criminals in Bradford received a wake-up call today as the county's biggest ever crime drive arrived in the city.

In a series of early-morning raids across the Bradford North and Keighley divisions, arrest squads swooped on the homes of suspected robbers and burglars.

The raids came on the second day of West Yorkshire Police's Target initiative which pledges to lock up hundreds of persistent offenders involved in burglary, robbery, violence, car crime and drugs.

The two-year scheme - the first of its kind in Britain - will run alongside a series of high-profile policing operations at public-order hot spots as well as public -consultation and community-safety initiatives.

Chief Superintendent Adam Briggs, who is heading the Target initiative, said: "This is a bad day for criminals in Bradford."

At around 7am, 150 officers boarded vans outside the Alhambra theatre, armed with intelligence information packs on their target criminals. Within 30 minutes, the first of the five-strong arrest teams were returning to police stations with their detainees. By 11.30am, 12 people had been arrested in North Bradford and six in Keighley.

As he watched the first arrest squads roll onto to the streets West Yorkshire Chief Constable Graham Moore declared: "We are going to put the fear of crime where it belongs - back with the criminal."

Today the first suspects appeared in court following yesterday's launch of Target in the Leeds and Kirklees areas. Officers confirmed that 51 people were arrested, 28 from Leeds and 23 from Kirklees.

In Kirklees, one man was charged with robbery while another was charged with drugs offences. Nine men were charged with burglary and one man was released without charge. Enquiries are continuing into two other men. Seven men wanted on warrant and one wanted for breach of bail was also returned to court.

In Leeds, one man was charged in connection with eight robberies and remanded in custody. Ten were charged with burglary and bailed. One man was released without charge while four men remain in custody with enquiries continuing. Five men and one woman were bailed pending further enquiries. Six men wanted on warrant were returned to court.