Four Liverpool men who made around £500,000 from a county lines style drug gang have been jailed for a total of 31 years.
Jake Burrows, Jack Ross, Ryan Langshaw and Jake Dykstra ran a gang which flooded Shropshire with crack cocaine and heroin.
They made regular drug runs to the county and sold to addicts in the area.
Police traced much of their activity back to a mobile phone based in Merseyside.
They also recruited local drug dealers to help them with local knowledge, transport and a base to operate from.
Police believe the south Liverpool gang, who 'preyed on the vulnerable,' made over £500,000 from selling drugs . The gang was sentenced at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday.
'County lines' drug gangs typically send young people to small towns around the country. Recruits are initially offered huge sums of cash and then bullied and threatened into accepting much smaller amounts of cash.
Jake Burrows
Jake Burrows, 24, of Thorn Tree Close, Hale, Liverpool, was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine.
He was jailed for ten years and six months.
He was also given a one year suspended sentence to run concurrently for a robbery in Warrington in 2015. He will be subject to a serious crime prevention order on release from prison.
Jack Ross
Jack Ross, 21, of Prenton Green, Speke, was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine.
He was jailed for five years and six months.
Ryan Langshaw
Ryan Langshaw, 21, of Western Avenue, Speke, was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine.
He was jailed for five years and six months.
Jake Dykstra
Jake Dykstra, 21, Alderwood Avenue, Speke, was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin and conspiracy to supply crack cocaine.
He was sentenced to five and a half years, and was also sentenced to two years to run concurrently in connection with three other offences in Bournemouth, Hereford and Shrewsbury between 2016 and 2017.
Florence Marley, 58, Springfield Way, Shrewsbury was convicted of conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine and jailed for two and a half years.
Paul Watton, 34, The Old Barns, Waymills, Whitchurch was convicted of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs. He was issued with a two year suspended sentence.
The police investigation was led by Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector, Gavin Kinrade. He said to the ECHO : "This gang who preyed on vulnerable members of our community addicted to illicit drugs.
"They showed no regard for these very vulnerable individuals or to the misery and devastation heroin and crack cocaine cause to individuals, their families or our community. They were motivated solely by greed.
"This was a complex and time consuming investigation and these offenders have been brought to justice by a professional and dedicated team of detectives who continue to fight organised crime in West Mercia."
