Three men sentenced over drugs network between Gosport, Plymouth and Liverpool
They've been sentenced for their involvement in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin
Three more men have been sentenced for their involvement in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin between Liverpool, Gosport and Plymouth.
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary’s Northern Area Serious & Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) led the investigation into the County Lines drugs supply network, with the support of Merseyside Police and Devon & Cornwall Police, resulting in the operation being dismantled from the ground up.
Over the course of the investigation, 4kg of drugs and more than £30,000 in cash were physically seized by police, along with a number of weapons. Between 1 January 2022 and 28 March 2023, the network sold at least 25kg of crack cocaine and heroin in Gosport, and approximately 9.6kg of crack and heroin in Plymouth.
By targeting suppliers operating in Gosport, police were able to work their way up the chain of command to identify couriers, operational managers and ultimately two heads of the Organised Crime Group (OCG) – brothers Anthony and Brian Siner.
On Friday 24 April, the following three men were sentenced at Portsmouth Crown Court:
Paul Naughton, aged 30, of no fixed abode, who has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, was jailed for six years.
Brett Coe-Quainton, aged 26, of Gale Moor Avenue in Gosport, who has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, was jailed for five years.
Kevin Wealthal, aged 57, of Little Chilworth in Gosport, who has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, was sentenced to two years, suspended for two years, and was also made subject to a tagged curfew.
A total of 17 conspirators were brought into the criminal justice system, pleading guilty to their involvement in the conspiracy, and so far 14 have been sentenced to more than 85 years in prison.
Anthony Siner oversaw the Siner OCG, running heroin and crack cocaine through Gosport, while Brian controlled the line operating in Plymouth, Devon, from his prison cell where he was coming to the end of a 14 year sentence for previous drugs supply offences in Liverpool.
The County Line – which marketed itself as a brand known as the ‘Scouse Dave’ line – had been embedded in Gosport for a number of years, with local police officers conducting regular disruption and intervention work to target distributors and remove drugs from the supply chain.