Scarborough Drug Gang Brought Down After Major Police Operation
10 Leeds drug dealers have been sentenced for supplying heroin and crack cocaine in Scarborough
An organised crime group responsible for flooding Scarborough with heroin and crack cocaine has been dismantled following a lengthy police investigation, culminating in the final member being jailed for over 12 years.
Stephen Frederick Gedge, 33, from Leeds, was sentenced to 12 years and 9 months at Bradford Crown Court today (Friday, 2 May 2025), marking the conclusion of North Yorkshire Police’s complex Operation Dissolve.
The group, active between September 2017 and October 2018, used multiple drug lines and operated almost daily from various locations in Scarborough.
Gedge, who ran the operation from a home in the seaside town, coordinated with his second-in-command, Benjamin Luke Conway, 32, to control runners and oversee a profitable supply chain.
Drugs were stored in medicine capsules and sold at known ‘deal’ spots including beaches, caravan parks, and woodland areas.
Undercover operations, surveillance, and phone analysis played a crucial role in bringing the 10-member gang to justice.
Several were caught on camera dealing to known drug users, with others arrested in possession of drugs, cash, or phones linked to the operation.
Conway had previously been sentenced to seven years for his role in the operation, plus an additional six years for offences investigated in West Yorkshire.
Other members received a combination of prison sentences and suspended terms.
Detective Constable Darrel Temple of North Yorkshire Police said the investigation was “one of the most complex” in recent years, adding: “Offenders like them bring untold misery to our neighbourhoods. This case sends a clear message — we will not tolerate drug dealing in our communities.”