The Drugs Squad squad stormed a flat in a dawn raid which ended in one man's arrest and the seizure of a stash of suspected class A drugs, cash and a knife.
The alleged crack house in Hetley Road, Shepherd's Bush, was raided on Tuesdayby police from the drugs squad and Shepherd's Bush Green Safer Neighbourhood Team, who used a battering ram to burst through the door.
Neighbours watched from behind net curtains as the helmeted officers, also wearing black balaclavas, ran shouting into the flat.
In a pre-raid briefing, Hammersmith and Fulham police said they expected the occupants may try to hide wraps of drugs in their mouths.
This was confirmed when shouts of 'spit it out' were heard as police forced one of the three occupants face down on the floor.
The drugs squad's Detective Sergeant Simon Rogers said: "We had him in cuffs and he spat out about 10 wraps onto the floor.We were worried he was trying to swallow drugs."
In the pre-raid briefing, police had said they believed an older and vulnerable householder had been 'coerced or manipulated' by drug dealers and users who were using his flat as a base.
The man, who was in his home when it was raided, was not arrested and social services are now trying to rehouse him.
A third occupant, a woman officers believe to be a street drinker, was made to leave the flat. A sniffer dog was used to ensure all possible evidence had been found.
Wraps of suspected class A drugs, a lock knife, a passport, around 50 DVDs, cash and a suspected cannabis cigarette were bagged and removed.
Shepherd's Bush Green Safer Neighbourhood Teams' Sergeant Terry North said that three neighbours had complained their 'lives were being poisoned'.
He added: "It's rare because people are normally afraid to come forward,but not this time because feelings are very strong in the area.
"At the moment, residents feel alarmed or distressed by the antisocial behaviour which is ruining their lives, but this operation will turn their lives around."
Police are now applying to magistrates for an order to enable them to seal the flat for three months.
The fourth occupant of the flat will also need rehoming - a very startled tabby cat which shot out of the flat and sped past riot police as they entered.
