These are the members of a notorious drugs gang who plotted to flood the streets of Stoke-on-Trent with drugs. Seven men have been jailed for a total of 37 years for their part in a conspiracy to supply heroin, cocaine and cannabis from Merseyside into Staffordshire.
Two other men and a woman will be sentenced at a date to be confirmed. Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard the ‘County Lines’ operation involved drug users in the Potteries contacting the ‘Scouse Chris’ drugs line and ordering drugs.
But the gang’s criminal enterprise came crashing down in January 2020 when officers from Staffordshire Police and Merseyside Police carried out a number of drugs warrants across North Staffordshire and Liverpool resulting in nine arrests. Police identified 132 journeys made from Liverpool to Stoke-on-Trent over a five-and-a-half month period.
Speaking after the case, DC Colin Jones, from Staffordshire Police, said: “This has been an exhaustive investigation which has resulted in 37 years of prison sentences so far. This is a true testament to years of hard work and dedication by officers.
“Conducting hundreds of hours of detective work, we were able to build this case and bring each and every offender operating in this conspiracy to justice, despite their efforts to evade police.”
The defendants jailed were: