Mansfield ex-soldier's multi-million pound drugs conspiracy with frozen chickens
Members of a gang led by a former British Army soldier from Mansfield have been jailed after £3.8m worth of heroin was found at his home.
Samuel Newton led a criminal network that collected and stored vast quantities of drugs for onward supply – with controlled substances imported from abroad hidden in frozen chicken.
Three other men, including one from Mansfield Woodhouse, and woman from Sutton, have also now been jailed for their parts in the operation.
Newton was caught after he broke down on the M62, with Merseyside Police attending and finding 8kg of cocaine and 5kg of ketamine in the Ford Transit van he was driving.
He failed a roadside drugs test and was transported to custody in Merseyside.
While in custody, officers searched his home address in Bryony Way and found a colossal amount of heroin (38kg) in his garage, along with £3,315 in bank notes hidden within a wall cupboard.
Together, the cocaine, ketamine and heroin seized from him after his arrest had an estimated street value of up to £4.76m.
Newton became a tradesperson after leaving the Army and turned to drug dealing after a business venture collapsed.
Following his arrest in December 2021, Nottinghamshire Police launched Operation Affinity to uncover the full extent of the drugs operation Newton was involved in.
Text messages discovered by detectives suggested Newton, now aged 41, frequently took possession of the drugs and sometimes disposed of the meat himself.
Further investigation work revealed members of the criminal gang travelled around in hire vans large enough to carry substantial quantities of drugs, with multiple journeys made to places such as Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Leeds, Newcastle, London and Southend.
Drug experts calculated the street value of these drugs would be as high as up to £147m.
Banking documents showed vast amounts of money were also transferred between members of the drugs gang throughout the conspiracy, with bogus references such as ‘grandad loan’ designed to mask the criminal operation.
Newton was jailed for 14 years at Nottingham Crown Court on March 5 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs, as well as conspiracy to possess criminal property.
On November 5 at the same court, four co-defendants were sentenced for their roles in the gang.
Newton’s partner Abi Holbrook, 32, of Samuel Unwins Court, Sutton, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer criminal property and was jailed for two-and-a-half years, suspended for three years.
Her father Gavin Holbrook, 57, of Birkland Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply controlled class A and B drugs and was jailed for five years.
Amiel King, 30, of Bearwood Road, Smethwick, Sandwell, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply controlled class A and B drugs, namely diamorphine, cocaine and ketamine and was jailed for five years and one month.
George Marshman, 33, of The Fairways, Clifton, Ashbourne, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply controlled class A and B drugs, namely diamorphine, cocaine and ketamine and was jailed for five years and 11 months.