Members of Lancashire / Manchester drugs gang are jailed

Four members of a drugs gang who conspired to flood the streets of Accrington with heroin and crack cocaine they trafficked from Cheetham Hill have been jailed for just over a quarter of a century.

The Max drugs line was headed up by defendant Hasnain Ashraf. Next on the rung of the organised crime group (OCG) were drug runners Lewis Lord, Joseph Oakes and Aston Johnson.

When Lord, Oakes and Johnson were bagging up drugs at various addresses in Accrington – something Lord recorded on his mobile phone – they recruited Paul Moxham to sell drugs on their behalf.

On numerous occasions during the conspiracy, which ran between September 2022 and June 2023, Ashraf sent his most trusted drugs runner Lord to Cheetham Hill to collects large quantities of heroin and crack cocaine from his associates Sameer Amin and Lloyd Spencer.

After the drugs were sourced and prepared, the OCG then sent bulk text messages advertising drugs for sale.

As well as filming himself and his associates bagging drugs, Lord also recorded videos of large amounts of drugs, cash and a Rolex.

On 20th June 2023 a number of arrests were made in Accrington, Blackburn and Cheetham Hill.

When Ashraf was arrested at his home in Accrington we seized a mobile phone and watch.

Spencer was arrested at his home in Chetham Hill and we found scales and tubs covered in white residue.

Amin was arrested at his home in Manchester and attempted to flush a large quantity of heroin down the toilet. A mobile phone, cash and scales were also recovered.

Lord was arrested in the Blackpool area and a mobile phone was recovered.

Johnson was arrested at his home address with a mobile phone being seized, as well as scales and snap bags.

Moxham was arrested at his home in Altham West and a mobile phone was found within the property that contained the Max Line phone number

Oakes was arrested this July after just over a year on the run.

The defendants were charged and sentenced to the below at Preston Crown Court last Monday (7th October):

• Hasnain Ashraf, 29/06/1990, of Frederick Street, Accrington. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis. Jailed for 10 years and four months

• Lewis Lord, 17/08/2001, of South Square, Blackpool. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine. Jailed for eight years and nine months

• Lloyd Spencer, 16/08/1983, of Hawkshead Road, Manchester. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine. Jailed for three years and nine months

• Joseph Oakes, 05/04/2001, of no fixed address. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine. Jailed for two years and eight months

• Sameer Amin, 25/12/1992, of Hovey Close, Manchester. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis. Received a two-year suspended sentence

• Paul Moxham, 17/10/1973, of Whalley Road, Altham West. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine. Jailed for Received a two-year suspended sentence

• Aston Johnson, 10/11/2003, of Brear Vale, Oswaldtwistle. Charged with conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine. Jailed for Received a two-year suspended sentence

DS Stu Peall, of the East Exploitation Team, said: “These seven men played key roles in what they thought was a well-organised Class A drugs supply operation. Through dedicated police work we managed to unravel their trafficking operation and put them before the courts – even Joseph Oakes who thought he would never be caught.

“We know that these OCGs exploit the most vulnerable members of society and cause misery in the areas in which they operate. We will continue to target these groups, dismantle their operations and put their members before the courts.”

Clive Grunshaw, Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner said: "Results like this highlight the often unseen work being carried out around the clock, and will reassure the public that we are tackling organised crime at full force, with Lancashire Police acting on information from the public to drive criminals out of our county.

"Strong deterrents and proactive enforcement are key, as is focusing on intervention to stop crime in its tracks and break the cycles of reoffending.

"I will continue to back the Chief Constable, so our police officers and staff have the resources they need to tackle criminal gangs and bring offenders to justice." Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.