Two men who ran a huge Breaking Bad-style amphetamine factory will spend longer in prison after a court found their sentences to be "unduly lenient".
The drugs lab was one of the largest amphetamine factories ever found in the UK and was capable of producing 400 kilos of amphetamine per month, worth £2 million at wholesale and up to £10 million at street level.
Keith Davis, 56, from Buckinghamshire, underwent chemistry training to enable him to operate the huge site. Andrew Gurney, 51, from Birmingham, known as ‘The Geek’ due to his specialist electrical installation and plumbing skills, converted what had been a double garage outbuilding into the drugs lab.
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Gurney also received the same chemistry training as Davis, Coventry Live reports. The two were involved in a professional conspiracy to produce tons of amphetamine sulphate, a class B drug. Davis was also involved in further conspiracies to produce other drugs.
On June 10, at Kingston upon Thames Crown Court, Davis was sentenced to 5 years and 3 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to supply and produce a class B drug and conspiracy to transfer criminal property. Gurney was sentenced to 6 years and 3 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to produce a class B drug and possession of criminal property.
Following the sentencing, the then Solicitor General referred the sentences of both offenders to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme as he felt that they were too low.
On Wednesday (September 21), the Court found the sentences of both Davis and Gurney to be unduly lenient. Davis received a new sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, while Gurney will now also serve a sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment.
Speaking after the hearing, the newly appointed HM Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson MP said: "The illegal and dangerous drugs produced and supplied by both Davis and Gurney will have ruined lives, and so I am satisfied with the decision of the Court to order both offenders to serve longer prison terms.
"The new sentences are a better reflection of the seriousness of the crime of drug dealing and supplying at this level."
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