Three Scarborough criminals jailed for combined 11 years for running drug dealing racket

Alfie Bailey, 22, and his partner-in-crime - who can’t be named for legal reasons at this stage - ran seven ‘dealer lines’ during their criminal enterprise and directed their foot soldiers Joshua Greaves, 26, and former soldier Brandon Hutchinson, 21, to deal on the streets, York Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Ashleigh Metcalfe said the gang sent out “broadcast” messages to scores of potential customers advertising heroin and crack cocaine for sale.

They repeatedly changed the telephone numbers for the dealer line throughout the supply operation in a vain attempt to avoid detection.

“The dealer line was initially known as the ‘P Line’ but later became the ‘Stacey Line’,” added Ms Metcalfe.

The police investigation began in August last year when a known drug user was arrested in Scarborough for possessing Class A drugs which were bought on the ‘P Line’.

“Once that number was activated it was used to contact several known drug users,” said Ms Metcalfe.

A few days later, following an “encounter” with police in the Barrowcliff estate, the gang leaders changed the number and began operating a new dealer line.

Hutchinson bought top-up credit for that number a few weeks after it was activated, but then the gang changed the number again, at which point they started sending out “broadcast” texts on the new ‘Stacey Line’.

The message read: ‘Stacey on, active’ and was sent to about 60 potential customers.

The number was then changed a fifth time and a broadcast message went out to the same number of people.

The message read: ‘Stacey active 24/7. On all night’.

Ms Metcalfe said this was “clearly a reference to the dealer line being open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with the capacity to supply both heroin and crack cocaine.”

The dealer number was changed a sixth time in October 2022 when another broadcast message was sent out, except this time it was “more succinct, just saying, ‘Stacey’”.

“By this time, the ‘Stacey’ dealer brand was established without need to reference (the types of drugs on offer),” added Ms Metcalfe.

When it was changed for a seventh time, the gang leaders simply told their customers: “Stacey back to normal.”

Ms Metcalfe said that Bailey and his named sidekick “had control of the texts relating to the drug-dealing line”.

It was they who directed the “street dealers or runners” including Hutchinson who was arrested on September 8 in a part of town where drug dealers met customers.

He was found with four wraps of crack and officers later found a further five wraps of cocaine in his underwear at the police station.

DNA evidence also linked Greaves to one of those wraps.

Ms Metcalfe said that in a 10-day period alone, Bailey received £1,130 from a known drug user who had bought Class A drugs on the dealer lines.

Bailey and his sidekick admitted being concerned in the supply of heroin and crack cocaine on the day their trial was due to be held.

The offences occurred between August 19 and November 25 last year.

Greaves, from Scarborough but of no fixed address, admitted being concerned in the supply of crack between September and November, and Hutchinson admitted possession with intent to supply crack cocaine.

The four men appeared for sentence at the Crown Court today.

Ms Metcalfe said Bailey and his named sidekick played an “operational” role in the drug racket with

the “expectation of significant financial reward”. Greaves and Hutchinson had played lesser roles

“under direction”, with limited financial gain.

Bailey, of Maple Drive, Scarborough, had 15 previous offences on his record including two previous convictions for supplying Class A drugs, along with robberies and possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

He was on prison licence at the time of the latest drug enterprise after receiving a 42-month jail sentence in April 2021 for possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.

Greaves had 35 previous convictions for 51 offences, predominantly acquisitive crime but also possessing cannabis and assaulting emergency workers.

Hutchinson, of Phoenix Drive, Scarborough, had just one previous conviction for possessing cannabis.

Barrister Ben Campbell, for Bailey, said the Scarborough man had been recalled to prison to serve the remainder of the three-and-a-half-year jail sentence he received in 2021.

Adam White, for Bailey’s sidekick, said this was his client’s first conviction for drug dealing.

Nick Peacock, for Greaves, said his client had also been recalled to prison to serve the remainder of a

previous jail sentence.

He said that Greaves was “street-dealing to fund his own habit”.

Rachel Kelly, for Hutchinson, said the “vulnerable” former trainee soldier had only been street-dealing for a few weeks to fund his own habit.

She said he too had been dealing to support his own habit but he had since moved to London where he had found work in telecommunications.

Judge Sean Morris told the defendants: “The supply of Class A drugs is the root of enormous evil and crime.

"It’s filth and you have peddled misery.”

Bailey and his sidekick were jailed for four years each.

Greaves was jailed for three-and-a-half years because of his “appalling” criminal record.

Hutchinson was given a 20-month suspended prison sentence with 200 hours of unpaid work due to strong mitigating factors and his early guilty plea.