Major County Lines drug gang in Brighton and Hove jailed
They have been sentenced to a combined total of nearly sixty-years
Last updated 9th Nov 2022
Nine men have been jailed following a two-year major police investigation into a county lines drug dealing gang in Brighton and Hove.
They are serving a total of nearly sixty-years between them for offences including conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin - six of them were sentenced just two weeks ago.
Police became aware of the HECTOR drug line in 2018 after a mobile was linked to Class A drug distribution, and senior members of the gang who operated across Sussex were identified.
The group targeted young and vulnerable people to carry out deals through violence, extortion and intimidation before members were arrested and huge amounts of drugs were seized.
The investigation also found the HECTOR line changed phone numbers four times over four years, and those numbers were discovered on the mobiles of five people who had died in drug-related circumstances between 2018 and 2020.
Detective Inspector Dee Wells, of Brighton and Hove’s Community Investigations Team, said: “This was a long, complex investigation into an organised crime gang responsible for spreading untold devastation among our communities.
“The supply of illegal drugs is hugely destructive, going hand in hand with violence and exploitation, and underpinning all manner of wider criminality. As harmful substances, they also decimate the lives of their users.
“DC Piggott has worked tirelessly to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice. I am delighted with these sentences.
“I would like to thank our partners in the Metropolitan Police for their support in this investigation, which has taken a large number of dangerous people and substances off the streets.
“Our commitment to tackling County Lines drug dealing is unwavering and we will continue to make Brighton and Hove, and the wider county, an inhospitable place for suppliers to operate.”