Gang jailed for £4m cocaine supply

Police said the group trafficked cocaine with a street value totalling more than £4m

A drugs smuggling gang that trafficked cocaine between London and Devon has been jailed.

Eight men and one woman linked to the gang were sentenced over three days for drug supply offences at Exeter Crown Court.

The court heard they carried out 20 courier runs over nine months in 2020.

Devon and Cornwall Police said the group trafficked cocaine with a street value totalling more than £4m.

Stacy Howells, Anthony Carr, Adam Hammerton and Kevin Leaman were organisers in the gang, the court heard

Detectives from the force's Serious and Organised Crime Branch monitored their visits to the region.

They were arrested in October 2020.

The lead offenders were Stacy Howells, 45, of Avon Road, Torquay, and Anthony Carr, 46, from Lodge Lane, North Finchley, who both pleaded guilty to co-ordinating the shipments of 50kg and 60kg of cocaine.

They were jailed for 13 years and 10 months, and 10 years and four months respectively.

Two further organisers, Kevin Leaman, 44, of Glasshouse Lane, Exeter, and Adam Hammerton, 45, of Frobisher Road, St Albans, were jailed for five years and eight years respectively.

Three couriers were also jailed.

Kieran Martin, 33, of Gilbert Court, Plymouth, was sentenced to two years and two months, while Jason Tarone, 52, of Canonbury Road, Islington, was jailed for two years and seven months.

Lee Winter, 60, of Durham Rise, London, was given a suspended sentence of two years.

Two further offenders, Darren Hardman, 52, and his wife, Waraporn Hardman, 47, from Corfe Crescent, Torquay, were sentenced after police found a "large amount of cocaine" at the address.

Darren was jailed for four years and 10 months, while Waraporn received a suspended sentence of 10 months and two weeks.

'Serious criminal network'

Det Insp Sam Smoothy, senior investigating officer, said the case was "hugely complex".

"This case involved exemplary work by the investigation and prosecution team who through meticulous attention to detail and effective co-ordination with partner agencies dismantled a serious criminal network, delivering a hugely complex but successful prosecution.

“By exploiting evidence from a variety of sources the investigation team cracked the [the organised crime group].

"In particular, evidence from encrypted chat groups identified individuals involved and proved the scale of supply.”

A two-year investigation codenamed Operation Lunched has seen 20 people jailed for trafficking cocaine and cannabis.