Yacine Djalti, 20, of Liverpool but with no fixed address, was sentenced today to nine years and nine months in prison for

A heroin supply conspiracy

Crack cocaine supply conspiracy

Criminal property damage

Being in public with a knife blade

Racially charged public order

The charges stem from the operation of a crack cocaine and heroin “county line” known as the “Mo” into south Cumbria between July and August 2021.

At an earlier hearing on March 23rd, other members of the OCG were sentenced.

• Fred Williams, 21, of Glasven Road, Liverpool, was sentenced to two years and ten months in prison for his involvement in the distribution of cocaine and heroin.

• Gary Crompton, 59, of Aurorean Close in Liverpool, was sentenced to two years in prison for conspiring to supply a class A controlled substance – Crack Cocaine and Heroin.

• Ben Heavyside, 31, of Titchfield Street, Barrow, was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for conspiring to supply a class A controlled drug – heroin – and arranging or facilitating another person’s travel for the purpose of exploitation.

• Derek Duncan, 50, of Stonegarth, Carlisle, was sentenced to two years in prison for conspiring to supply a class A controlled substance – Crack Cocaine and Heroin.

• Marc Woods, 44, of Abbey Road, Barrow, was sentenced to 13 months in prison for allowing premises to be used.

Cumbria Police executed a warrant at an address on Abbey Road in Barrow-in-Furness on July 28, 2021, following up on intelligence that drug dealing was taking place in the area.

The address yielded eighty wraps of crack cocaine and ninety-eight wraps of heroin worth £3,600, as well as £360 in cash. Inside the flat were Marc Woods, a street dealer named Derek Duncan, and’stock keeper’ Fred Williams. All three were apprehended.

Phone evidence from the day revealed that all three had frequent contact with OCG head Djalti, as well as with drug courier Gary Crompton.

On the 5th of August 2021, officers executed a warrant at another address on Titchfield Street in Barrow-in-Furness, seizing 89 wraps of heroin and £1,080 in cash. Inside were the flat’s occupant, street dealer Ben Heavyside, and a Merseyside juvenile.

The investigation’s final arrest occurred in Merseyside on August 17, 2021, when Cumbria and Merseyside Police jointly executed a warrant on Whitney Road in Liverpool. Djalti was spotted on the street as they approached the address, and a foot chase through gardens ensued, with Djalti discarding mobile phones, cash, and a knife. When the phones were recovered, it was discovered that both were the handsets used to operate the county line during the conspiracy.

Djalti’s drug operation exploited the most vulnerable in society for profit,” a spokesperson for the south area Community Serious and Organized Crime Unit said.

He and other members of the crime syndicate used a child to smuggle drugs into the county, and he profited from Cumbrians suffering from addiction.

The investigation against this criminal group was lengthy and complex, and the strength of the evidence against Djalti – which eventually led to him pleading guilty to the full facts of the prosecution case rather than electing for trial – was achieved in collaboration with Merseyside Police.

I hope these sentences send a clear message to those selling Class A drugs into south Cumbria: we will pursue, arrest, and prosecute you regardless of where you live.

The information you provide us on drug supply is critical to our efforts to address this issue. If you see or have information about drug supply activity, please contact us.