Ten people admitted being part of the movement of 250 kilos of cocaine worth in excess of £15 million between 2019 and 2022. Officers from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate were first alerted to the criminality when they seized a phone in 2020 during a separate investigation.
International operation
There was an international operation running at that time which took down an encrypted mobile phone chat system called EncroChat, being used by criminals across the UK and Europe. The operation allowed investigators from the National Crime Agency to understand the illicit activity of people using the system and showed the scale of criminal businesses operating across multiple countries.
As part of that work data was retrieved from thousands of devices, which included the phone in this instance, that had been seized by officers.
The information on the phone led Kent Police detectives straight to David Squires and Lewis Cosgrove who both had EncroChat handles.
They were later found to be instrumental in the running of a Kent-based organised crime network and had a part to play in the mass supply of cocaine to at least two other organised crime groups in different counties.
Detectives built further connections to Patrick Hallahan, Kevin Ratcliffe, Richard Shelton, Jessie Cockle, Michael Blewett and Damien Freeman. They all had a role in the conspiracy, either sending or receiving drugs or cash, possession of drugs and criminal property, managing supply records or being on the payroll.
Drugs were being shipped between Kent, Suffolk, and East Sussex.
Cash and drugs seized
Squires was arrested in connection with this conspiracy on 5 March 2021, where six kilos of cocaine and approximately £114,000 in cash were recovered from a premises that belonged to him in Rochester.
In addition to the drugs and cash, a tick-list recovered from him identified that the network had been in receipt and subsequent distribution of 43 kilos of cocaine.
When Squires was arrested, Cosgrove was elevated within the network to replace him, and detectives continued to build their case and gather the evidence needed to secure charges.
Cosgrove was seen by officers having a meeting in Strood with a man named James Savva from London on 29 November 2021. Cosgrove collected two bags from Savva and took them to an address. After he had left that premises, police ordered a search warrant at the property and recovered 16 kilos of high-purity cocaine.
Search warrants
On 23 March 2022, detectives had enough evidence to bring in all the suspects they believed were involved in the conspiracy.
Enforcement action was carried out, simultaneously, at several properties in Kent, London, Suffolk, and Sussex. Hallahan, Shelton, Ratcliffe, Cockle, Cosgrove, Blewett, Freeman, Savva and a man named Carl Crabtree were all arrested and charged.
Approximately £145,000 in cash was recovered during those property searches in addition to high-value items and watches.
Guilty pleas
All 10 suspects pleaded guilty to the charges put to them, as follows:
Patrick Hallahan, 36, of The Drive, Hove, Brighton: 4 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine and 1 count of encouraging/assisting in commission of indictable offences.
Richard Shelton, 41, of Hillcrest Close, London: 3 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.
Kevin Ratcliffe, 42, of Longhill Road, Brighton: 4 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.
David Squires, 46, of Chorister Crescent, Hoo, Rochester: 3 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.
Jessie Cockle, 29, of Hulver Road, Beccles, Suffolk: 2 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.
Lewis Cosgrove, 39, of Butlers Park Way, Rochester: 4 counts of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine and transferring criminal property.
Michael Blewett, 43, of Mulberry Close, Brighton: 1 count of being concerned in the supply of class A cocaine.
Damion Freeman, 45, of Lenham Avenue, Saltdean, Brighton: 1 count of being concerned in the supply of class A cocaine.
Carl Crabtree, 41, of Colsterdale, Carlton Colville, Lowestoft, Suffolk: 1 count of possession of criminal property.
James Savva, 51, of Reservoir Road, London: 1 count of conspiracy to supply class A cocaine.
Jailed
The organised crime group were sentenced on Thursday 18 January 2024 and received the following sentences:
Hallahan – 14 years.
Shelton – 15 years and six months.
Ratcliffe – 14 years.
Squires – Seven years.
Cockle – 14 years and six months.
Cosgrove – 12 years and nine months.
Blewett – 10 years and six months.
Freeman – Eight years and six months.
Crabtree – Three years.
Savva – Five years and eight months.
Kent Police’s Investigating Officer, DC Mark Froome, said: ‘Disrupting criminal gangs like this and putting a stop to their offending in Kent will continue to be one of our priorities.
‘The supply of drugs into this county brings misery to people’s lives and we will always work with other forces to ensure we catch those responsible.
‘The criminals involved in this conspiracy were focused on making money and their greed got in the way of any consideration for the lives they would destroy once those drugs had found their way into our communities.
‘No matter how good you think you are at covering your tracks, we will eventually catch up with you to ensure justice is served.’
