Three sentenced to nearly 30 years for drugs offences

Two cousins and their accomplice have been sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison after admitting conspiring to supply class A drugs.

Liam Duffy, 36, was arrested in October 2015 with his associate, David Hazelhurst, 37, of Tomlinson Street, Moston.

When officers stopped their vehicle they found concealments in the rear footwells which contained two kilos of cocaine and two kilos of a mixture of caffeine and paracetamol – a cocktail often used to bulk out class A drugs to maximise profit.

Hazelhurst’s flat was searched and officers found a further kilo of cocaine, a quarter-of-a-kilo of heroin, 36,000 MDMA (ecstasy) tablets, 45 kilos of cutting agents and drug paraphernalia used to cut and mix drugs.

Shortly before his arrest, Duffy had visited his cousin, James Delaney, 40, of Selkirk Road, Chadderton.

When the property was searched, an additional nine kilos of cocaine was found hidden in bags in an upstairs wardrobe and Delaney was arrested.

The street value of all the drugs seized is estimated to be around £650,000, but officers estimate that the wider conspiracy involved the supply of drugs with a street value of over £9.5m.

On June 14, the three men were charged with conspiracy to supply class A drugs, with Hazelhurst additionally charged with possessing heroin and MDMA with intent to supply.

On 13 July they pleaded guilty and were remanded in custody. Liam Duffy was sentenced to 12 years in prison, while David Hazelhurst and James Delaney were sentenced to 9 years 7 months and 8 years respectively.

Craig Watson, Operations Manager from the National Crime Agency, said: