Man jailed in connection with Ipswich drug offences
He's been sentenced to 8 years behind bars
A man has been jailed after being found guilty of drug offences in Ipswich.
Ronnie Downes of Winterbourne Road, Dagenham was found guilty after a five day trial in January this year for being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs.
Today (5 March) at Ipswich Crown Court, appearing for sentence, he was jailed for eight years.
It follows a joint operation conducted in August last year where Metropolitan police officers arrested the 21-year-old man in London on suspicion of being concerned in supplying controlled drugs. He was transported to Suffolk and attended the Martlesham Heath Police Investigation Centre for questioning. He was subsequently charged by Suffolk police officers from the Serious Crime Disruption Team (SCDT) for two counts of being concerned in supplying controlled drugs, namely diamorphine and crack cocaine, between 1 December 2019 and 27 July 2020.
The activity to arrest Downes formed part of Operation Orochi, led by the Metropolitan Police. This has been in place in Suffolk since February 2020. It focuses on tackling drugs supply offences and County Lines by arresting the line controller, rather than the person transporting the drugs. Officers from the team in Suffolk will share intelligence with a dedicated team at the Met, who will then investigate in order to identify the line controller and their location.
The SCDT core aim is to disrupt serious and organised gangs whose criminal activity focuses on issues such as drug supply and harmful personal acquisitive crime such as robbery/burglary. The team develop the relevant information and intelligence, conduct enforcement activity and then provide an officer who will build the case and see the investigation through to trial.
DC Dave Murphy from the SCDT said:
"This was another great result to get the scourge of drugs off our streets. Ronnie Downes was an operator who has links to drug gangs and is an individual who was determined to sell on the streets of Ipswich bringing misery to residents and vulnerable people. This is the kind of activity we are targeting and we will continue to take robust action against those who deal drugs around the county. I am pleased with today's sentence and it should be a warning to those dealing that we will not tolerate it.
"We will continue to listen to concerns of residents and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to tackle Class A drug dealing in the county and also wider afield where drug gangs have links ot London and other urban areas."
Detective Chief Inspector Ben Clark who oversees the Op Orochi operation for Suffolk said:
"This is a fantastic result for the community and the Serious Crime Disruption Team. It's powerful demonstration of how we tackle criminality to keep our communities safe and the public can take confidence from the proactive approach that the Suffolk force takes."
Detective Inspector Nick, Harvey from the Met's Operation Orochi team, added:
"We have been working with Suffolk Constabulary for just over a year now and this joint-policing approach has helped put a number of people in jail for County Lines offences and disrupted a number of drugs supply routes out from London.
"We will continue to support Suffolk Constabulary in our efforts to dismantle County Lines routes - a crime type that so often leaves a trail of violence and misery."