Organised crime group sentenced to 57 years for trafficking £7 million worth of heroin

Five members of an organised crime group responsible for trafficking over 70 kilograms of heroin, with a street value of approximately £7 million, have been sentenced to a total of 57 years and 2 months at Cardiff Crown Court.

The convictions follow a investigation, known as Operation Solon, led by Tarian, the Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) for South Wales.

The operation began on May 12, 2022, when Tarian requested that Police Scotland arrest Steven Creasey, a former police officer and Royal Navy veteran.

Creasey was stopped en-route to Fife, having already driven from Cardiff to Liverpool, with 5 kilograms of heroin hidden in a professionally installed compartment in his vehicle.

A burner phone linking Creasey to the crime group was also found.

Tarian's investigation revealed that Creasey was a courier working for a Liverpool-based organised crime group led by Christopher Brannan and Stephen Hopkins.

The group trafficked large quantities of heroin across the UK, using Creasey and other associates—Kevin Thomson, Christopher Heaney, and Jeffrey Hickson—to distribute the drugs.

Brannan laundered the proceeds through his partner, Kirsty Murphy's bank account.

Enforcement actions were carried out in late 2022 across Cardiff, Liverpool, Anstruther, Lochgelly, and Blyth, resulting in the discovery of significant evidence, including heroin, cocaine, adulterants, opium, cannabis grows, expensive jewellery, and metal moulds for pressing powder into blocks.

All five defendants pleaded guilty before the trial. Sentences were handed down as follows:

Christopher Brannan, 18 years and 5 months

Christopher Heaney, 9 years and 5 months

Jeffrey Hickson, 10 years and 4 months

Kevin Thomson, 6 years and 10 months

Steven Creasey, 12 years and 7 months

Detective Constable Rhys Richards of Tarian ROCU said:

"This OCG spread misery across the United Kingdom for their own financial benefit. Justice has now caught up with them."

"I hope these sentences send a strong message to those who see drug dealing and associated crimes as a way to make quick and substantial amounts of money."