Crimestoppers
Fearless - Our Youth Service
What are the consequences of involvement in County Lines?
By Crimestoppers volunteer Joshua Wood.
We hear a lot about County Lines – but what happens to those who are convicted of involvement? How significant is this crime, and how seriously does the criminal justice system take it?
County Lines is a term used for organised illegal drug-dealing networks, usually controlled by a person using a single telephone number or ‘deal line’.
They operate out of major UK cities such as London, Liverpool and Birmingham, and they distribute illegal drugs across rural and suburban counties via ‘runners’.
Vulnerable children and adults are recruited as runners to transport drugs and cash all over the country, so that the criminals behind it can remain detached and less likely to be detected.
This crime is often associated with other serious crimes such as sexual exploitation, violence, money laundering and human trafficking.
Here are some examples of what happens to those who get caught committing these crimes. To answer the questions we posed above, this is treated as very significant, and the criminal justice system takes it very seriously. As you can see below, individual sentences have been as high as over 14 years.
Fifteen people involved in a County Lines drugs operation targeting addicts in Cumbria have been jailed for a total of nearly 90 years, including one sentence of more than 14 years.
The operation also involved a process known as "cuckooing" - when people from outside the county targeted vulnerable people in Carlisle and set up temporary "nests" in their homes from which to establish a drug-dealing network.
Judge Peter Davies said the conspiracy had caused "devastation, despair and a huge financial and social cost this county cannot afford".
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2kwzy5C
A total of 12 people were recently jailed after being involved in a County Lines gang which made over 400 deliveries of heroin and cocaine in Warwickshire. The drugs had an estimated street value of more than £400,000.
10 men and two women were sentenced to a total of 68 years in prison, including one individual sentence of more than 10 years, after targeting Warwick and Leamington with drugs transported from Birmingham.
Detective Inspector Rich Brown from the Warwickshire Police Serious and Organised Crime Unit said: "This sentence… sends a clear message to those involved in this type of crime that we will pursue you and bring you to justice.
"This wasn't petty drug dealing; it was a well organised operation causing harm to many vulnerable people in Warwickshire.”
Read the full article: http://bit.ly/2kh2ka8
Three County Lines drug dealers from Portsmouth were jailed in a landmark case for using vulnerable teenagers as runners to carry drugs to Portsmouth and money back to London. One was sentenced to over 12 years.
Judge Usha Karu said: "One of the main reasons [the victims] were chosen was because of their youth. Many were arrested for possession with intent to supply and thus they too became embroiled in the justice system.
"The level of psychological harm they may have suffered is hard to gauge."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2Q6wBDQ
Members of a gang who used children as young as 13 to deliver drugs have been jailed for a total of nearly 34 years.
Det Ch Insp Ben Mant, in charge of covert teams for Devon and Cornwall Police, said: "Specialist undercover officers spent more than 10 months gathering in excess of 2,500 pieces of intelligence to help Devon and Cornwall Police secure these convictions and protect children from the gang's violence."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2mdabpQ
Five members of a gang in North Yorkshire were jailed for a total of over 25 years. The drugs they supplied included potentially lethal mixtures.
Det Con James Temple of North Yorkshire Police said: "The gang targeted local drug addicts, many of whom are vulnerable due to their addiction and to compound the risks to them, some of the drugs were a potential deadly mix of heroin and fentanyl."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2kd4FTl
County Lines is a term used for organised illegal drug-dealing networks, usually controlled by a person using a single telephone number or ‘deal line’.
They operate out of major UK cities such as London, Liverpool and Birmingham, and they distribute illegal drugs across rural and suburban counties via ‘runners’.
Vulnerable children and adults are recruited as runners to transport drugs and cash all over the country, so that the criminals behind it can remain detached and less likely to be detected.
This crime is often associated with other serious crimes such as sexual exploitation, violence, money laundering and human trafficking.
Here are some examples of what happens to those who get caught committing these crimes. To answer the questions we posed above, this is treated as very significant, and the criminal justice system takes it very seriously. As you can see below, individual sentences have been as high as over 14 years.
Fifteen people involved in a County Lines drugs operation targeting addicts in Cumbria have been jailed for a total of nearly 90 years, including one sentence of more than 14 years.
The operation also involved a process known as "cuckooing" - when people from outside the county targeted vulnerable people in Carlisle and set up temporary "nests" in their homes from which to establish a drug-dealing network.
Judge Peter Davies said the conspiracy had caused "devastation, despair and a huge financial and social cost this county cannot afford".
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2kwzy5C
A total of 12 people were recently jailed after being involved in a County Lines gang which made over 400 deliveries of heroin and cocaine in Warwickshire. The drugs had an estimated street value of more than £400,000.
10 men and two women were sentenced to a total of 68 years in prison, including one individual sentence of more than 10 years, after targeting Warwick and Leamington with drugs transported from Birmingham.
Detective Inspector Rich Brown from the Warwickshire Police Serious and Organised Crime Unit said: "This sentence… sends a clear message to those involved in this type of crime that we will pursue you and bring you to justice.
"This wasn't petty drug dealing; it was a well organised operation causing harm to many vulnerable people in Warwickshire.”
Read the full article: http://bit.ly/2kh2ka8
Three County Lines drug dealers from Portsmouth were jailed in a landmark case for using vulnerable teenagers as runners to carry drugs to Portsmouth and money back to London. One was sentenced to over 12 years.
Judge Usha Karu said: "One of the main reasons [the victims] were chosen was because of their youth. Many were arrested for possession with intent to supply and thus they too became embroiled in the justice system.
"The level of psychological harm they may have suffered is hard to gauge."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2Q6wBDQ
Members of a gang who used children as young as 13 to deliver drugs have been jailed for a total of nearly 34 years.
Det Ch Insp Ben Mant, in charge of covert teams for Devon and Cornwall Police, said: "Specialist undercover officers spent more than 10 months gathering in excess of 2,500 pieces of intelligence to help Devon and Cornwall Police secure these convictions and protect children from the gang's violence."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2mdabpQ
Five members of a gang in North Yorkshire were jailed for a total of over 25 years. The drugs they supplied included potentially lethal mixtures.
Det Con James Temple of North Yorkshire Police said: "The gang targeted local drug addicts, many of whom are vulnerable due to their addiction and to compound the risks to them, some of the drugs were a potential deadly mix of heroin and fentanyl."
Read the full article: https://bbc.in/2kd4FTl
