From prescription pills to cocaine, officers set out to arrest nearly a dozen people they say were selling drugs on the streets of south eastern Kentucky.

Barbourville police officers say about a year and a half ago, they noticed an increase in the city's drug problem. But the round up is a sign they are determined to get those drugs off their streets.

Officers arrested seven of about a dozen suspected dealers.

Officer Brian Senters says, "A couple of them are saying they're trying to support their own habits, a couple of them are saying they're just trying to make ends meet."

Assistant Police Chief Bill Swafford says, "We are in a continuing process to eliminate, or try to eliminate, drug use, drug activity within our city."

And the successful round up forced the local jail to close for nearly an hour.

"We were processing them here faster than they could process them at the jail, at the same time, the jail was getting people ready for court, so it kind of clogged the system up," says Senters.

Senters says you may be surprised to find out who is using the drugs.

"Trying to protect our kids. we're in a war, it's not getting any better, the younger kids are getting hooked younger and younger," says Senters.

Senters says he's seen children as young as 12 years old addicted to drugs. He hopes the latest round up will stop the problem at its source.

"We're not going to actively pursue grandma, however when grandma's dope is ending up in the hands of kids, then she becomes a problem," says Senters.

The police chief says round ups like this one are just another sign to those drug dealers that they will be caught.

Because of budget cuts, Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement helped Barbourville City Police with transports to the jail.