The spirit of Walter White appears to be alive, though not so well, here in Croydon after the Metropolitan Police revealed this morning that “an estimated £1million worth of crystal meth has been seized” at an address in the borough.

Ice man: Bryan Cranston as ex-chemistry teacher Walter White in the cult TV series Breaking Bad

The police were keeping all other details of their raid on a flat in Croydon a closely guarded secret.

Judging by other recent drug seizures, £1million-worth of meth probably weighs in at about 50lb… so someone local must have picked up some lessons from the fictional chemistry high school teacher, White, who created his own little meth factory in the back of a camper van in the New Mexico desert in the cult TV series Breaking Bad.

The Croydon operation was probably more prosaic. “A man was arrested and later charged with possession with intent to supply a Class A drug,” a statement from the police said.

“The arrest was part of work to disrupt and prevent serious violence in Croydon.” Which is pretty much a given, really.

It’s not so long ago that the BBC was running typically “positive” online news reports under the headline, “Why doesn’t the UK have a crystal meth problem?”

Methamphetamine has been used worldwide for decades, and according to the UN, it was being abused by 1million in the United States in 2011.

There are no reliable figures for the use of crystal meth in Britain. But whatever the true figure, its use might be reduced for a while in this corner of south London for a while, at least.

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