UK police busted a drug operation that was run from inside a prison. A mouthy parrot was among the evidence used to put the suspects behind bars.
Lancashire Police posted a news release about the incident on August 4. Authorities explain that they made 14 arrests, not including one man who was already in prison. The gang operated in the Blackpool area between February 2023 and July 2024.
Officials say they were first alerted to the operation when prison officers found “a number of mobile phones and Wi-Fi routers” during a search of 35-year-old Adam Garnet’s cell. Police revealed Garnet’s second-in-command people after the discovery. Dalbir Sandhu, 41, Shannon Hilton, 29, and 50-year-old Jason Gerrand. The news release explains that officers searched their home addresses. They found “large quantities of drugs, cash, and phones all linking the gang to one another.” Detectives seized “Cash, heroin, crack cocaine, ketamine and cannabis, plus mobile phones,” during the searches. They then used forensics to link the evidence to the defendants.
Police Found A Video Of A Parrot On One Of The Defendant’s Phones
The drug ring began to unravel when police searched Hilton’s phone. The news release clarifies that she was Garnet’s girlfriend. Authorities found several incriminating videos on the device, including video calls between her and Garnet with “what appear to be kilo blocks of cocaine.” Police also noted, “footage of her (Hilton) teaching her pet parrot to say ‘two for 25’ in front of a child, and of the parrot playing with money which was gained through their illegal activities.”
The news release explains that although Garnet was in prison, he was still involved in moving evidence so police could not find it. He also had “communication channels” with the entire gang. Authorities ultimately arrested 15 people in connection with the drug line. They all pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court. The police report reveals specific sentences for each individual, totaling up to 103 years in prison.
Garnet was charged with two counts of conspiring to supply class A drugs. The judge sentenced him to 19 years and six months in prison on top of his existing 15 years. Hilton, his girlfriend, faces 12 years behind bars for two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and possession with intent to supply Class B drugs.
DS Alves of the West Targeted Crime Team welcomed the sentences. “We will continue to dismantle these gangs, whether they are operating behind bars or otherwise,” he declared.