A court has sentenced five men for being involved in a drug dealing phone operation which sold cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin.
Fifty officers were involved in raids across Oldham in the north west of England in February, seizing drugs, cash, and drug paraphernalia including scales and powders which were being used for cutting.
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Police alleged that the gang had a designated mobile phone, where more than a thousand calls were received in just 12 months from people looking for class A drugs.
Credit: PA
Four men were deemed responsible for the phone operation and they were sentenced at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court yesterday, according to the Manchester Evening News.
Ryan Robinson, 29, was sentenced to six-and-a-half years for being the head of the drug syndicate. Daren Stothard was handed four-and-a-half years for also running the phone operation while Robinson was in jail for an unrelated matter.
Jayden, a street dealer, received a four-year sentence, while Ian Noble, another street dealer, will face three-and-a-half years behind bars.
Lewis O'Connor was also arrested and charged during the raid. He was handed a six-year prison sentence in addition to the four others.
Manchester Minshull Crown Court. Credit: Google
Detective Sergeant Rick Arthern of GMP's Challenger Oldham Team has told the M.E.N: "We will continue in our fight to dismantle the processes and tactics used by organised crime groups at every opportunity, no matter how sophisticated or established they try to be."
He also alluded that it was a public tip-off that led police to the gang: "Without the public coming forward, these people would not have been prosecuted today so I'd like to express my heartfelt thanks to those who have helped us put a stop to organised crime.
"With that help, we can investigate and infiltrate the operations of those who benefit from the proceeds of crime."
TITAN, the name for the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit, has seized nearly £80million worth of drugs since its inception in 2009.
More than 559 criminals have been arrested and those convicted have been sentenced collectively to 2,327 years behind bars.
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During their operations, they have also seized more than £13 million in stolen cash and property as well as 59 firearms.
Its website reads: "The mission of the unit is simple - to tackle organised crime groups causing the greatest levels of harm to communities in the North West."
Source: Manchester Evening News & TITAN
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Drugs