Drug dealers on Merseyside are being warned to think twice before risking the wrath of the Manx police.

The Isle of Man Constabulary is targeting the area as part of its crackdown on the importation and supply of illegal substances.

In the past five months there have been 25 arrests for serious drug offences, and a high percentage of the offenders and substances have come from Merseyside.

Students at the Isle of Man College have designed posters to warn people about the lengthy prison sentences imposed in the Isle of Man for drugs offences.

They will be displayed at airports and ferry ports around the north west of England in a bid to drive home the anti-drug message.

Recently, members of a Merseyside drug dealing syndicate were jailed for a total of 30 years by the Manx Courts, in a case which received a lot of publicity in the United Kingdom.

Detective Sergeant Allan Thompson from the Drugs Trafficking Unit says: 'if anyone is naive enough to be involved in bringing drugs to the Island, we will track them down, arrest them and deal with them appropriately'.

(Image: One of the posters, featuring a prison cell and the words 'Welcome to your new en-suite'. Underneath are the words 'Manx laws concerning drug smuggling are severe, and any person smuggling or attempting to smuggle drugs into the Isle of Man can face up to life in prison').