Police Scotland have made 36 arrests in the “biggest and most co-ordinated” operation the force has ever carried out to target alleged human trafficking.

Around 300 officers were deployed for the operation on Wednesday and they are understood to have raided 47 properties across Glasgow, Falkirk, Dundee and other locations in the central belt and north-east.

As well as the arrests, 14 cannabis cultivations were discovered by police and “a number of potential trafficking victims” were also found.

Operation Kendrew is targeting a group said to be mainly run by people from Vietnam, with some members from other south-east Asian countries, operating across the UK.

Offences the gang is under investigation for include alleged human trafficking, drug cultivation, fraud, forced labour, immigration crime, and money laundering.

Detective Superintendent Stevie Bertram, head of Police Scotland’s national human trafficking unit, said officers believe Operation Kendrew will “absolutely” disrupt the group’s activities going forward.

He said: “This enforcement action is the biggest and most co-ordinated human trafficking operation that we have ever carried out, and is a result of a lengthy investigation, working closely with our partners.

“We took a co-ordinated approach, and the arrests and seizures are a result of this work.

“Human trafficking is the illegal trade in human beings for the purpose of commercial exploitation, and it has no place in Scotland.

“It exists in many of our communities and involves people who are resident legally in the country.

“The industry of trafficking people has become so sophisticated that it often goes unnoticed.

“We will target criminals who abuse, control, and exploit people, working with partners nationally and internationally to bring offenders to justice and to raise public awareness to help identify victims and ensure they get the support they need.”

Around 20 people had been arrested by 12.30pm on Wednesday.

A warehouse in the Dalmarnock area of Glasgow was among the addresses raided by police as part of the operation.

At 8am, officers wearing protective helmets used tools to cut through a shutter and gain entry to the property, where they could be seen carrying out searches inside.

A property in the Springburn area of the city was also raided.

Police Scotland partnered with the National Crime Agency, the Home Office, Immigration Enforcement, HMRC and Vietnamese and other south-east Asian policing forces for the operation.

Mr Bertram said it is an “ongoing, large-scale investigation”, and he urged anyone who might have information or suspicions relating to human trafficking to contact police.

“I think the Scottish public are much better now at spotting the signs of human trafficking and are more likely to phone,” the detective said.

“The ask is to continue to do that.”

He said if anybody has any suspicions at all, they should contact the police “as a matter of urgency.”

The Scottish Government says tackling organised crime remains a priority, calling human trafficking “abhorrent”.

A spokesperson said: “Police Scotland are to be commended for this significant intervention to stop those who exploit and abuse people.

“Human trafficking is abhorrent and must be tackled by working with partners nationally and internationally to bring offenders to justice, raise awareness, and ensure victims receive the support they need.

“Disrupting organised crime is a priority for the Scottish Government. The Scottish Crime Campus was established over a decade ago to ensure the main law enforcement agencies, including the National Human Trafficking Unit, work together to target those who profit from serious organised crime.”