Gang jailed for combined total of over 46 years
Sussex Police said this was a landmark case.
Last updated 6th Sep 2023
Seven members of a Brighton drugs gang have been jailed for a total of 46 years and four months.
The sentences follow a two-year investigation by the Brighton Community Investigation Team.
Police investigated the HECTOR county drugs line, which brought crack cocaine and heroin into Brighton from Essex during 2020.
Eight defendants were arrested in several operations between October, 2020 and the summer of 2021.
Alongside drug convictions, they were convicted of modern slavery offences against four children in an extremely rare outcome for a case such as this. One is awaiting sentence.
During their three months of running the HECTOR line, the group supplied around 8,000 wraps of Class A drugs in Brighton and Hove, with a street value of around £80,000.
Detective Superintendent Kris Ottery said:
“This effective use of modern slavery legislation shows our commitment to protecting vulnerable people affected by the illegal drug trade.
“County Lines drags a wide range of innocent people into its orbit and has a devastating impact on communities that goes beyond the harmful substances themselves.
“In this instance we have not just brought eight dangerous individuals to justice for their crimes – we have also safeguarded four vulnerable children and protected innumerable other people from their harmful trade.
“I would like to commend the investigative team, our partners in the Met Police and Essex Police, and the variety of community agencies for this complex, thorough investigation that has helped make the streets of Sussex safer for everyone.”
The sentences handed out were:
-Cris Donovan, 31, of Bishops Hall Road, Essex – five years in prison
-Gary Goodwin, 23, of Eastwood Road, Essex – seven years in prison
-Liam Harvey, 25, of Hermitage Drive, Essex – eight and a half years in prison
-Jayden Henry-Flavien, 31, of Bellhouse Road, Southend-on-Sea – eight years in prison, including a current sentence for drug offences in Essex
-Nicola McKenzie, 49, of Ingram Crescent West, Brighton – 24 months in prison, suspended for two years, with 200 hours unpaid work and 15 hours of rehabilitation activity
-Dean Warrington, 47, of Pamplins, Essex – four and half years in prison
-Thomas Warwick, 32, of Prospect Close, Southend-on-Sea – 11 years in prison, including a current sentence for drug offences in Essex