Gang sentenced after Hereford drug deal went wrong

Six members of a drug dealing gang who arranged to deal narcotics into Herefordshire were sentenced at Worcester Crown Court on Friday (6 March) to a total of nearly 15 years.

The two groups, who were from Northamptonshire and Wales, were part of a criminal organisation that were caught after a drug deal for a suspected value of £40,000 went wrong in the middle of Morrisons car park, in Hereford in the middle of the day on Friday 5 March 2021.

Witnesses saw cash flying in the air, a man running across the car park with a knife and one of the members of the organisation getting stabbed, who received a minor injury.

The gang were sentenced last Friday as follows: -

• Matthew Walford, 27, of Long Mallows Rise, Northampton was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery for which he was given four years in prison and being concerned in the supply of a class A drug – cocaine for which he was sentenced to two years concurrently.
• Jack Norrish, 30, of Brixworth, Northampton, was convicted of conspiracy to supply a class A drug – cocaine – and sentenced to four years and being concerned in the supply of a class A drug – cocaine – sentenced to two years concurrently and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £190.
• Ashley Manning, 30, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to 38 months (three years two months) for conspiracy to commit robbery and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £190.
• Jack Mooney, 31, of Nansen Walk, Corby, Northamptonshire was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery – two years in prison, suspended for two years, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £156 and rehabilitation activity for 20 days.
• Jake Forsyth, 27, of Tillery Road, Abertillery, Gwent, was sentenced to three years and seven months for conspiracy to supply a class A drug – cocaine.
• Rebecca Edwards, 27, of Mountain View, Markham, Blackwood, Gwent, was convicted of assisting an offender for which she was given a community order to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work, ordered to pay £2,000 costs and a victim surcharge of £95.

Detective Sergeant Jim Moore of Hereford Proactive CID said: “This was a detailed and complex investigation into the supply of class A drugs, and while the association between drug supply and violence is well known, this incident shows the impact this offending can have on the community.

“The defendants met at Morrisons car park with the intention of supplying cocaine, but the transaction was a ruse designed to steal the money brought there to make the purchase.

“Members of the public witnessed the incident and saw Manning and Walford brandishing machetes.

“A proactive investigation uncovered the full scale of the operation, and the sentences are welcomed as recognition of the seriousness of the offences.

“West Mercia Police is committed to combatting serious and organised crime and protecting the public from harm and detectives will pursue those who commit these offences.”