Drug dealers jailed after police caught one buying credit for his burner phone

A man and woman have been sent to prison after admitting to dealing drugs in a Cheshire town. Jonathan Weedall and Karen Hazelden, both previously of Station Road, Northwich, were sentenced to more than five years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court on Wednesday 15 November.

Weedall, 36, and Hazelden, 43, each received a sentence of two years and eight months after they pleaded guilty to two counts of being involved in the supply of Class A drugs (heroin and crack cocaine). The case against them started in January 2022 when officers from Northwich Proactive Team got information from Merseyside Police about a mobile phone number being used by a local county lines drug gang.

The phone number was used to send messages advertising the sale of substances to repeat buyers, but this was a pay as you go mobile and wasn't registered to any specific user. After some investigation, officers found CCTV footage of Weedall buying credit for the phone at a local supermarket.

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Officers raided a flat on Station Road on Wednesday 26 January 2022, seizing several items including mobile phones. Weedhall and Hazelden were arrested and taken into custody.

During questioning, Weedall admitted to topping up the phone for someone else, while Hazelden remained silent. Despite their denial, phone analysis revealed that both were involved in drug dealing, leading to charges.

Police Constable Adam Cupples, of Northwich Proactive Unit, said: "This case is a great example of partnership work between forces."

He added: "As soon as we received the intelligence that the mobile phone was being used as part of county lines