North East men behind bars for conspiracy to produce and supply drugs on industrial scale

Dale Dunn, Jack Freeman, Jake Galea-Hughes and Graeme Rutherford were all arrested following a police operation on April 25.
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Four men have been jailed for their roles in a conspiracy to produce and supply drugs on an industrial scale.

Dale Dunn, Jack Freeman, Jake Galea-Hughes and Graeme Rutherford were all arrested following a police operation on April 25. Officers forced entry into a storage unit at a business premises in Bowburn, County Durham, where they found an illicit pill-pressing machine.

The machine, which was capable of producing millions of tablets, was seized along with hundreds of thousands of tablets which were confirmed as Class C drugs, predominantly Bromazolam. Officers then located a secondary storage site in Birtley where thousands more tablets were found, with the overall operation understood to be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

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The four men were arrested at the sites and later charged with being concerned in the production and supply of Class C drugs, and participating in criminal activities of an organised crime group. All four pleaded guilty to the charges, and were sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on Friday.

The pill-pressing machine seized by police from a premises in Bowburn, County Durham
The pill-pressing machine seized by police from a premises in Bowburn, County Durham -Credit:Northumbria Police

Dale Dunn, 27, of Mardale Gardens, Gateshead, was sentenced to two years and three months in prison; and Jack Freeman, 24, of Slaley Close, Gateshead, was sentenced to two years in prison.

Jake Galea Hughes, 29, of Whitefield Pit, Houghton, also pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified and was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison, a two-year Serious Crime Prevention Order and six points on his driving licence.

Graeme Rutherford, 52, of Railway Cottages, Birtley, also pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply Class B drugs, and was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.

Following the quartet's sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Marc Michael, of Northumbria Police, said: "A conspiracy on this scale would have brought in vast sums of money to potentially be reinvested into further criminal enterprises, and the Class C drugs could have caused serious harm to anybody who abused them. Criminals ruthlessly look to exploit the addiction and desperation of the most vulnerable members of our communities to further their own illegal interests."

He continued: "We will do everything in our power to bring those involved before the courts to face justice, and we need members of the public to continue working with us by reporting any suspicions they have to us."

Northumbria Police encouraged anyone who had seen anything suspicious in their community to get in touch with them via direct message on social media, the live chat function or 'Report' page on the Force website.