A County Durham drugs gang ringleader must give up the value of two homes as he's ordered to give up the proceeds of cocaine and ecstasy deals.
Andrew Blake, of South Hetton, was ordered by a court to pay back more than £200,000 or face a further two years behind bars for the crimes which earned him over £2m.
Blake, 43, was jailed for 14 years in 2019 after being found guilty of conspiracy to supply cocaine and ecstasy.
He appeared at Teesside Crown Court via video link on Tuesday for a Proceeds of Crime Application, where a judge ruled his criminal activities brought in £2.3m.
He was ordered to pay back £203,151.09, which is what his current assets – two houses, a quantity of cash recovered, and money saved in a bank account - are valued at.
He will have to hand over the cash in the next three months or face the prospect of his jail term being extended.
Blake, at the time of his trial of Regent Court, South Hetton, had been identified as the ringleader in a 17 strong drugs gang – the members of which were all convicted for their parts in a conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
They were snared as part of Durham Constabulary's Operation Sidra, a long-running police operation to crack down on dealing across the county.
The Proceeds of Crime Application was pulled together as part of Operation Sentinel, the joint North East police forces' drive against serious organised crime.
Detective Sergeant Thomas Maughan, of the North East Regional Economic Crime Unit, said: “We are happy with the outcome, however, make no mistake, if Blake’s assets increase further, we will make a further application to recoup that money.
“This order shows that in addition to prosecuting those who believe they are above the law we will also pursue them to deprive them of their criminal gains.”
