County lines drug gang leaders jailed

Police said Kyle Sterling, left, and Lee Bavin led the gang

The man who led a so-called county lines gang which "flooded" a North Yorkshire town with heroin and crack cocaine has been jailed.

Kyle Sterling, 30, of Stubden Rise, Bradford, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine and possession of a prohibited weapon at Leeds Crown Court.

The gang he led used children to transport drugs and money between Bradford and Harrogate, according to police.

He was jailed for 11 years six months at Leeds Crown Court.

Police described Sterling as the head of the operation and said he advertised drugs to users in Harrogate through mass text messages.

Officers said his second-in command was Lee Bavin.

He was responsible for topping up the phone lines of the operation and travelling to Harrogate to oversee the sale of drugs while staying at the homes of local people.

Bavin, 30, formerly of Manchester Road, Bradford, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin and was jailed for five years and six months.

County lines is the term given to a form of organised crime in which drug dealers, usually from urban areas, target smaller towns and cities.

The network was brought down thanks to a joint operation by police forces in North and West Yorkshire, the Regional Organised Crime Unit, the National Crime Agency and the National County Lines Coordination Centre.

Gang members had run an operation called the "Jerry line", with the ringleaders in Bradford and those lower down the chain coming from Harrogate.

Children exploited

Seven of the couriers who transported drugs and money between the two places were children at the time of the investigation.

Law enforcement agencies have treated them as victims of exploitation and human trafficking, putting safeguarding measures in place.

Det Con Adam Heatlie, of North Yorkshire Police’s Organised Crime Unit, said the sentencing was the result of a lengthy investigation spanning several years.

“They flooded Harrogate with drugs, making money at the expense of local users, the majority of whom were vulnerable due to their socioeconomic background and mental health conditions."

He said Sterling and Bavin had show no regard for the "children they exploited and recruited to do their dirty work".

"They used the children as a commodity to help them make money, and to face the dangers on the streets so that they didn’t have to.

"They should hang their heads in shame."

Operating on behalf of Sterling and Bavin were local drug users from Harrogate who sold the drugs on their behalf in return for payment in crack and heroin.

Five of these were sentenced in court on Friday after all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A drugs.

Martin Gilham, 53, of Bewerley Road, Harrogate, was jailed for 12 months.

Martin Gilham, 53, was one of those involved in selling drugs in Harrogate

He was also sentenced to a further 16 months for a separate offence of animal cruelty unconnected to the drug supply investigation.

Kim Aylott, 37, of Belmont Road, Harrogate, was given a 12-month prison sentence suspended for 12 months.

She was also given a drug rehabilitation order.

Christopher Patrick Hollowed, 57, now of Allan Street, Rotherham, was given two years’ imprisonment suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.

Nathan Alexis Wilsher, 38, of Fairfax Avenue, Harrogate, was given two years’ imprisonment suspended for two years.

He was also given an electronic tag curfew between 19:00 and 06:00.

Haaris Khan, 24, of Grantham Road, Bradford was given an 18-month sentence suspended for 18 months and required to complete 150 hours of unpaid work.

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