Cocaine gang ran huge 'Amazon-style' drug dealing network across the UK

An organised crime group from Wigan was toppled by detectives who unearthed an enormous 'Amazon-style' dealing network which saw up to £53 million worth of cocaine trafficked throughout the UK. Carlisle Crown Court heard how the discovery of a 1kg class A drug stash, at Bowness-on-Windermere in the Lake District, during early February, 2023, prompted police to make arrests and seize the phones of three key players.

During what became Cumbria’s biggest ever drug investigation, officers amassed a 'mammoth amount' of detailed evidence including damning WhatsApp group message chat which showed 10 men — most from the Greater Manchester area — had each been vital cogs in a huge criminal cocaine supply wheel.

This ran for almost 15 months, from March, 2022, to May last year. Nine of the men eventually rounded up and brought to court admitted conspiracy to supply the class A drug. A 10th was convicted of the offence following a trial earlier this year.

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As their sentencing hearing got under way today, prosecutor Tim Evans called the scale of the plot 'truly massive'. In excess of 300kg of high purity cocaine, with an estimated street level value of between £35million and £53million, was moved by highly trusted criminal couriers.

The drug had been imported from abroad before being warehoused and then distributed to towns and cities across the UK. Destinations included Cumbria, Hexham and Newcastle.

Mr Evans described the overall geographical scale as 'extremely wide', saying: "It featured places including the Fylde coast, Yorkshire, various parts of the Midlands, the North East, South and North Wales and various other parts of England