Notorious drugs lord sees prison sentence slashed

A notorious drugs lord has seen his prison sentence slashed under the government's early release scheme. Jon Moorby, 54, is currently serving 29-years in HMP Frankland.

But the category A prisoner could be set free in just four years, TeessideLive reports. Moorby is checked on through his cell spy-hole every hour and he is accompanied by two prison guards whenever he leaves his cell.

He was handed a 15-year prison term in 2014 for supplying cocaine and amphetamine. He had fled the country and was sentenced in his absence.

Moorby took his millions to Thailand, where he continued to run the Teesside arm of an international drugs rings. Chartered helicopters flew in packages of cocaine into the south of England.

They were ferried up to Liverpool, where they were stored before Moorby arranged for the drugs to be delivered to Stockton, using an encrypted devices from Thailand.

Teesside Crown Court heard that the operation 'flooded the streets of Teesside with cocaine'. Drugs gang underlings transferred £59,000 to Moorby.

Moorby's exotic high life came to a dramatic end as the Thai police chased him in a speedboat. He was caught in 2017, having fled to the island of Ko Mudsom.

He began his 15-year sentence once extradited back to the UK in 2019. In 2021, he was handed the additional 14-years for conspiracy to supply class A drugs. Moorby's recent application to be re-categorised as a medium-risk - which would have seen him moved to a more relaxed prison - has been turned down.

But he has received notification he will be released in 2028, under the 40 per cent early release scheme. He is set to be released under home-curfew in June 2028 - so long as he keeps out of trouble in prison until then. Teesside's 'Mr Big' would