POLICE swooped on a large house in Bournemouth in a dramatic afternoon raid.

Five marked police vehicles, including one belonging to the dog-handling unit, arrived at the large detached home in Braidley Road at 1pm today.

One man was brought out of the house in handcuffs with a coat over his head.

He was put into a police car and driven away.

Police later said a man had been arrested on suspicion of drugs offences.

They said officers went to the scene acting on suspicions raised by residents in the area.

Officers searched two BMWs in the driveway of the home. They examined various documents including passports.

One resident of the road said: “It was a big surprise to see police outside my house, very frightening, but when I saw where they were going, I was not that surprised.”

The drama happened in an area full of substantial detached properties, a short way from Bournemouth Town Hall and not far from Meyrick Park. Homes in the area have sold for more than £500,000.

The police units that descended on the home included armed officers, although no guns were drawn and police said the armed response team was only sent because it was an available unit.

Another near neighbour said: “You see a lot of nice cars coming and going from there, some of them with Jersey registration numbers.

“There have been a lot of people coming in and out – it’s been going on for years.”