Seven men from Greater Manchester have been sentenced to over 51 years in jail for their roles in a class A and B drugs conspiracy, uncovered by a dedicated GMP operation

The following were sentenced today (14 July 2021) at Bolton Crown Court after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply drugs:

Scott Round (03/09/1987), of Leader St, Wigan, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs.

Craig Walsh (30/10/1985), of Southern St, Wigan, was sentenced to a total of seven years and eight months for conspiracy to supply class A and B drugs.

Joshua Hill (15/04/1989), of Leader St, Wigan, was sentenced to nine years and six months imprisonment for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

Cameron Jones (10/05/1999), of Ormskirk Rd, Wigan, was sentenced to a total of eight years and six months imprisonment for conspiracy to supply class A drugs and wounding with intent.

Adam Tempest (18/09/1986), of Dicconson St, Standish, was sentenced to three years for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

Arran Parkin (08/12/1974), currently of HMP Manchester, who is currently serving a 14 year sentence for Conspiracy to commit GBH was also sentenced at an earlier date to nine years, to run consecutively to his current sentence. Parkin was found guilty after a five week trial at Bolton Crown Court.

Thomas Kavanagh (29/03/1985), was sentenced to four years at an earlier date while the investigation was still live and has already served his sentence in prison.

This brings the total prison sentence for all involved to 51 years and 8 months.

Today's sentencing is the result of a large scale investigation by GMP's Serious and Organised Crime Group (SOCG) as part of Operation Billabong, targeting drug supply in Greater Manchester.

From September-November 2019, officers conducted a surveillance investigation culminating in a number of warrants being executed at numerous addresses across Greater Manchester, specifically in the Wigan area. The Police seized a significant amount of drugs, (namely cocaine, ketamine and cannabis), as well as cash, mobile phones and paraphernalia commonly used in the preparation and distribution of drugs.

It was during these warrants that the convicted were arrested and later charged.

Detective Chief Inspector Tony Norman, of GMP's Serious and Organised Crime Group said:

"Today's result is a success for the investigation team, CPS and Prosecution Counsel, who have all worked tirelessly to make sure that these men have been taken off the streets of Greater Manchester and are no longer able to contribute to the devastating drugs trade that sees communities living in fear and people's lives destroyed.

"This was a well-funded group of criminals who used encrypted mobile devices which utilise increasingly sophisticated technology to attempt to hide messages from police.

"These devices are almost exclusively used for criminal activity but our specialist officers were able to infiltrate the devices to recover crucial evidence which helped convict these people.

"I hope today's sentence sends a strong message to anyone involved in this type of crime that we will catch up with you and do all we can to see that you are brought to justice."