A gang who brought misery to the streets of Merseyside - and further afield – through a conspiracy to supply Class A controlled drugs, have today, Tuesday 12 September, been jailed for more than 135 years.



Op Scarva 12 A total of 21 people appeared at Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing following a 16-month Merseyside Police operation targeting the supply of controlled drugs in Anfield, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and Devon and Cornwall.

Merseyside drugs conspiracy gang jailed for more than 135 years. https://t.co/DXnNpbxlwF pic.twitter.com/v5eGZaoAGD

— Merseyside Police (@MerseyPolice) 12 September 2017

During the course of the operation over 100 people were arrested and 12kg of high quality Class A drugs were recovered together with a quantity of firearms and ammunition, cash and stolen vehicles.

The following all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs:

Francis Fearon, 30, of Caldy Road, was jailed for 11 years and four months
Steven Harrison, 28, of Chapel Road, Anfield, was jailed for 11 years and four months
Jamie Jarvis, 29, of Breckside Park, was jailed for 11 years and four months
Edward Murphy, 26, of Carnation Road, was jailed for 11 years and four months
Jamie Gray, 28, of First Avenue, was jailed for six years eight months
Mark Forster, 30, of Briar Street, was jailed for six years eight months
Steven Gandy, 31, of Paley Close, was jailed for six years
Lewis Aspinwall, 22, of NFA, was jailed for six years
Walter Corran, 24, of Skipton Road, was jailed for six years eight months
Liam Dickinson, 34, of no fixed abode, was jailed for six years eight months
John Mangan, 31, of Crossford Road, was jailed for eight years eight months
William Summerill, 26, of Carno Street, Liverpool, was jailed for seven years and eight months
James Tyrell, 25, of Pinehurst Road, Liverpool, was jailed for six years and eight months
Francis Usher, 29, of no fixed abode, was jailed for six years
Eddie Hamilton, 36, of NFA, was jailed for five years
Callum Armitage, 19, of NFA, was jailed for four years
A 16 year-old male was given a 12 month referral order
​A 16 year-old male was given a youth rehabilitation order, a three month curfew and six month referral order
Ataf Ali, 26, of Grange Drive, Bradford, was jailed for six years
Abaid Jamil, 29, of Whetley Hill, Bradford, was jailed for four years and nine months
Rikki Doran, 30, of Eastbourne Road, L9, was jailed for five years
Detective Superintendent Lee Turner said: "This operation was put into place after members of the public raised concerns about drug dealing in their community.

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"Organised crime groups like this, who deal in the wholesale supply and distribution of controlled drugs, don’t care about the impact that supply of drugs has in their neighbourhoods.

"These individuals expanded their criminal enterprise by setting up a drug supply network in Lancashire, Devon and Cornwall, North Wales and Manchester.

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"But I would like to reassure the decent members of our communities that Merseyside Police is committed to tackling the supply of drugs and we will continue to proactively tackle criminal gangs who think nothing of flooding the streets with dangerous drugs in order to profit from other people's misery.

"When we receive information about drug related crime and gun crime we will act. In relation to drug dealing, we often have to carry out an extensive operation, which can take some months, to gather evidence to ensure that when we get those involved to court the only option available is a prison sentence.

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"This was a very thorough investigation by a committed team of detectives over a considerable period of time. It is a reflection of their hard work and commitment, and the strength of the evidence in this case, that the defendants all pleaded guilty and time and money was not wasted on a trial.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the detectives involved in investigating this complex and far reaching drugs conspiracy and prosecuting barrister Henry Riding and the Crown Prosecution Service for all their hard work in bringing this case to a successful conclusion.

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"We will continue to take action but we cannot do this without the support of the public. We rely on our communities to tell us when there are criminal issues in their area so that we can take positive action and protect our communities. Any information supplied to us in relation to serious and organised crime will be acted upon."

Anyone with information about those involved in serious and organised crime, including the supply of controlled drugs and use of firearms, can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Excellent work by the police who really deserve a decent pay increase.
People dealing in drugs are the scum of thr earth and deserve harsh punishment.