What started in 2019, as an investigation into an organised crime group involved in supplying cannabis and cocaine, has ended with 20 people sentenced at court.
Intensive work by officers from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, supported by Leicestershire Police, had uncovered a well-established criminal arrangement between two men dealing wholesale amounts of the Class A and B drugs.
Following an initial arrest in August 2019, further enquiries revealed more people involved in the plot. Multiple kilograms of cannabis, as well as a quantity of cocaine, were seized. One man was found to have been importing cannabis from the United States.
Over the past three months, the defendants have been sentenced at Leicester Crown Court after all previously pleaded guilty to various drugs offences. Sentences peaked at seven-and-a-half years in jail.
Officer in the case, PC Rosie Wood said: “As more investigations were carried out during this operation, officers identified more and more people involved in drugs supply. Over the past few years this has seen 20 people brought before the courts."
Report drug offending online via your local force, call 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Always call 999 in an emergency.