Liverpool man jailed for heroin trafficking after Flintshire arrests
A heroin trafficker caught after going on the run from the National Crime Agency (NCA) has been jailed for 12 years and seven months.
Brian Storey, 49, of Liverpool, fled the UK after four co-conspirators were arrested for importing high-purity heroin.
Officers from the NCA discovered the group smuggled 18kg of heroin, worth £900,000, into the UK and aimed to bring in as much as 90 kilos every week.
The investigation formed part of Operation Venetic, the UK law enforcement response to the takedown of EncroChat, an encrypted messaging platform used by criminals.
Thousands of messages sent by Storey and his associates revealed heroin was imported from Spain and the Netherlands via mail courier services.
The drugs were delivered to rented offices for fake companies in Huntingdon, Northampton, Milton Keynes and Swindon, before being dispatched to contacts in Liverpool and North Wales.
Storey, known by the handle “RichJay”, was the group’s link to the supplier in Spain. He arranged heroin deliveries to the UK and directed Stephen Hunt, 64, of Great Oxenden, to set up courier firm accounts and fake companies. Storey also instructed Hunt where to deliver the drugs in the UK.
In May 2020, officers from the NCA, supported by North Wales Police, arrested two members of Storey’s group – Tyrone Holbrook-Harris, 31, of Flintshire, and Darren Barrett, 45, of Mold – in a pub car park in Mold.
They were caught with a parcel containing 9.45 kilos of heroin, worth £475,000.
Following the arrests, members of the group sent EncroChat messages expressing alarm. One message warned “That NCA don’t f*ck about”.
“Syruproad” was identified as Dylan Sanger, 38, of Ellesmere Port. He and Hunt were arrested in 2020.
While the four arrested men were charged, investigators continued to identify the person behind “RichJay”. By October 2021, Storey was known to be the user. Officers executed a warrant at his home in Fulwood Park, but Storey fled moments before.
By the time his associates were jailed in December 2021 for over 30 years combined, Storey had travelled to southern Spain with a fraudulent passport.
He was eventually caught when he returned to the UK. In September 2023, a Cheshire Police officer attending an assault in Chester city centre recognised Storey and arrested him on the NCA’s behalf.
Storey was charged with importing and supplying heroin on 24 September 2023.
He initially pleaded not guilty but changed his plea days into his trial at Caernarfon Crown Court on 23 July.
NCA lead investigator Luke Seldon said: “Our investigation exposed that Storey was an essential component in the importation of almost a million pounds-worth of heroin. Storey was point-person for the supplier in Spain and managed logistics for movement of the heroin into and around the UK.
“More deaths are associated with heroin than any other drug, so the National Crime Agency prioritises identifying and arresting those responsible for making it available in the UK.
“We work extremely closely with police across the UK and world to ensure we hold organised criminals to account. In this case, justice caught up with Storey thanks to determined NCA investigators and a vigilant Cheshire Police officer.”
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