FAMILIES holidayed in a caravan park oblivious to hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of high-quality cocaine concealed in their midst, a court heard.
Drug dealer Wayne Robson kept the cocaine stored in his sister’s caravan at Crimdon Holiday Park, Blackhall, County Durham.
When police raided the caravan, as well as Robson uncle’s home in the village of Ludworth, outside Durham City, they recovered cocaine with an 80% purity.
Durham Crown Court was told the drug had a street value of £646,000 while cannabis found in Robson’s uncle’s house was worth a further £123,000.
Robson, 40, of Moor Crescent, and his uncle Peter Davies, 64, of Barnard Avenue, both Ludworth, admitted conspiracy to supply a Class A drug, cocaine, and a Class B drug, cannabis, at an earlier court hearing and they appeared before a judge at Durham Crown Court for sentencing yesterday.
Another man, John Flynn, 45, of Hesketh Bank, Preston, Lancashire, admitted transferring criminal property after £40,880 in cash was found concealed in a compartment behind a rear passenger seat of a VW Passatt he was driving. John Gillette, prosecuting, said police had been keeping watch on Robson and Davies and swooped after Robson was seen exchanging packages with Flynn.
They stopped Flynn’s car outside the village of Coxhoe, Durham, where they recovered the money.
When they searched Davies’ home they found cocaine, cannabis and equipment for adulterating the cocaine.
They went on to search the caravan where they found even more cocaine and a health club card in Robson’s name which was used to cut the drug.
The court was told the men stood to make a profit of around half a million pounds by selling on the drugs.
Mr Gillette said the caravan had been bought for £24,000 in cash to store the drugs.
Julie Clembitson, for Davies, said her client was only partially aware of the extent to which his nephew was involved in the drugs trade and agreed to allow him to use his home to store drugs because of “family loyalty”.
But the judge, Recorder Gregory Perrins, said the men were involved in a “large-scale, sophisticated, significant and professional commercial drugs operation”.
He sentenced Robson to seven years in jail, Davies to five years and Flynn to 18 months.
