Hundreds of officers were involved in a major policing operation as they tracked down an organised crime gang which operated a stash house in Nottingham. Detective Sergeant Adam Petty has revealed details from one of the largest operations that he has been involved in his career - which has seen a total of 45 people from Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and Lancashire jailed for their part in the conspiracy.
Det Sgt Petty, from Lincolnshire Police's Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said that officers analysed around 300 separate phones and around a million of phone data to track down key members of the gang. He recalled a quote that stood out during their analysis of the cryptic messages.
"Call me the Latvian Escobar", one of the messages found on the Lancashire line read. "So it was one of the males who referred to himself as the Latvian Escobar as he was speaking to a colleague," added Det Sgt Petty. The operation, which started in September 2020, also included analysing intelligence, stopping vehicles and making arrests to "understand how the line was actually operating in Lincoln".
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"We knew that our instict was correct," said Det Sgt Petty describing the operation. "It all forms part of the bigger picture. We will stop a car that was coming across and recovered drugs from that car, then formed part of the case. Because this is a conspiracy case, so we are showing all conspired together."
The enforcements, which started in June 2021, were across 11 different lines with officers "looking at a whole range of different organised crime groups, county lines and local lines". Police executed a warrant at the stash house on Belconnen Road, Nottingham, from where drugs were flooded to neighbouring counties. Officers found £10,000 worth of drugs and a firearm at the property.
Another firearm was discovered at a stash house in Lincoln, on Yarborough Road, and also "a dozen of other big knives" were found throughout the investigation. "Knuckle dusters, all sort of weapons were found at various times during the investigation," Det Sgt Petty said.
It took two years and hundreds of officers to collect enough evidence for this case. On January 20, the final two members of the organised crime group were sentenced at Lincoln Crown Court.
Both men were members of the organised crime gang (OCG) dubbed the Django Line which was responsible for taking drugs from the cross-border stash houses into Lincoln and dealing in the high street and other areas. Police said it is estimated that in just 59 days, the OCG made almost £20,000 worth of drug deals. The investigation carried out by Lincolnshire Police in partnership with the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) also uncovered illegal weapons including a zombie knife, lock knives and machetes.
Kelvin Tutani, 27, of Yarborough Road, Lincoln, has been sentenced to four years and ten months for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and possession of an altered firearm without a firearm certificate. The weapon, a shortened shotgun, had been found during warrants carried out at his rented flat in Yarborough Road. Evidence showed he had handled the weapon. Fellow gang member Alex Amanuel, 28, has also been sentenced to four years and two months for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
A total of 45 people from Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Lancashire have been jailed for their part in the conspiracy. In total, they have been given 130 years and five months between them in prison, as well as community orders and suspended sentences, and three vulnerable people exploited by the groups were also identified.
Det Sgt Petty said that "thousands and thousands of hours went into this investigation". During sentencing, Judge Sjolin Knight praised the investigative team, saying: "I have been very impressed by this investigation. I commend all the officers and civilian investigators for their excellent and vital work, and for the good of society."
The operation was even more succesful, Det Sgt Petty said, as they had 44 gulity pleas that were not a trial. "It was phenomenal to be able to do that," he added. "It just showed that the evidence and the way it was presented was so good that these people had nothing else to say."
Asked if it was the case that he is most proud of, Det Sgt Petty added: "Definitely. To receive that commendation from the judges as well as the hard work of my team, it was really quite cool and impressive. It was quite satisfying to be able to make a difference and do what we do because, of course, the police have invested a lot of time and money into this. I am pleased to say that we are able to show the rewards of all that hard work and hopefully make a difference.
"If we did not enforce it, they would still be going now causing misery. There would have been more violence. Given they had large knives and firearms, I have no doubt that had we not done what we did, there would have been significant violence linked to this crime group."
Det Sgt Petty added: "I want to thank all the different partner agencies and forces that got involved in this, including the British Transport Police and Nottinghamshire Police."
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