A 65-year-old man from Guyhirn, Wisbech, has been jailed for five years and a second man from the same village jailed for 30 months, for their part in a drugs ring. Two others who also admitted cocaine supply offences in Corby and beyond were also jailed.
The illegal enterprise was run by Alexander McConnell, 59, who was helped to sell wholesale quantities of the Class A drug by accomplices Edward Shephard, 40, also known as Ted, and Darren Lafferty, 50, to customers including James Davis, 35, of Guyhirn and Marcus Brown, 65, also of Guyhirn,
An investigation into the men’s activities was run by the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) during October and November 2020.
This showed how McConnell and his associates would store, drop and collect drugs from vehicles, including a grey Citroen van, that they left parked at various locations around Corby.
On October 8, Brown and Davis drove in convoy from their homes in Cambridgeshire to Corby, where Brown met with Lafferty before all three went to Corby Town Football Club.
There they met with Shephard, who had earlier collected drugs with McConnell, and a handover took place.
Soon after leaving, Davis was stopped by police in Cottingham and a search of his Jaguar car saw officers recover a clear bag containing a block of white powder which was later to be found to be high-purity cocaine with a street value of up to £24,900.
On October 18, McConnell visited the football club and filmed footage from its CCTV on his phone, thought to be an attempt to show that Shephard was not responsible for the police arresting Davis.
Officers continued to gather evidence on the group’s activities, before McConnell and Shephard were arrested on November 25, followed by Lafferty on December 1, and Davis and Brown on December 3.
All five went on to be charged with conspiracy to supply Class A drugs (cocaine), with McConnell also charged in relation to another conspiracy involving the supply of cocaine from Liverpool to Corby between April and December 2020.
In April 2021 McConnell was jailed for 10 years and eight months after admitting both charges.
The remaining four defendants were due to go on trial last December, only for Shephard to change his plea to guilty at the outset of proceedings, followed shortly by Lafferty and Brown.
Davis had already admitted possession of cocaine with intent to supply and prosecutors accepted this plea and allowed the conspiracy charge to lie on file.
On Monday, July 15, the four men returned to Northampton Crown Court, where Shephard, of Pascal Close, Corby, was sentenced to 32 months’ imprisonment.
Lafferty, of Snatchill Close, Corby, was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment.
Due to previous convictions for the same offence, Davis, of High Road, Guyhirn, Wisbech, Cambs, received five years’ imprisonment for the charge of possession with intent to supply.
Brown, also of High Road, Guyhirn, Wisbech, Cambs, was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment.
An order was granted for the forfeiture of £5,058.57 cash recovered from Shepherd, as well as a deprivation order for a BMW car.
A further court hearing involving Lafferty and Brown is set to take place on November 25 under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Speaking afterwards, senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Darren Brown of EMSOU, said: “The drug supply operation run by Alexander McConnell was large scale and sophisticated, with the group using a variety of tactics to try to disguise what they were doing.
“Our painstaking investigation saw us piece together the evidence to prove each man’s role and involvement in the conspiracy, leading to their eventual guilty pleas.
“Drug dealing on this scale is serious and involves enormous amounts of money, and we will always go after those responsible to ensure they face justice for their crimes.
“EMSOU remains committed to tackling drug harm as one of Northamptonshire Police’s matters of priority, and I’m pleased to see this commitment recognised by the courts with these robust custodial sentences.
“Finally, I would like to thank all those involved in our investigations for their dedication and hard work, which have paid off in these guilty pleas and significant jail terms.”
If you have any information about activity which could be related to illegal drugs, you can report it by calling 101, or going online at www.northants.police.uk/RO. In an emergency, always call 999.
Information can also be shared anonymously via independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555111 or online at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information
