Five members of Sunderland gang who flooded East Durham with drugs launch bids for freedom

Clockwise from top left, Robert Anderson, Paul Casey, Andrew Belford, Darren McBride and Ryan Johnson are appealing against their convictions for plotting to supply cocaine.

They were among 17 mainly Wearside criminals eventually convicted as part of a four-year Durham Police operation to disrupt Class A dealing in the East Durham area.

The five, snared following what the force described as a “long and complex investigation”, were all found guilty by a jury of plotting to supply cocaine following a six-week trial at the end of 2018.

All have now launched bids to overturn their convictions and will have their cases heard on Friday, March 13, at London’s Court of Appeal.

They are:

Robert Anderson, 45, of D’Arcy Court, Hendon, Sunderland, described in court as one of the gang’s ring leaders, who was jailed for a decade;Darren McBride, 34, of Pauls Green, Hetton, who was also locked up for 10 years; Andrew Belford, 33, of Londonderry Street, Silksworth, Sunderland, who was jailed for seven years;Paul Casey, 45, of North View, Castletown, Sunderland, who is also behind bars for seven years; Ryan Johnson, 26, of The Tilery, Shotton Colliery, who is serving seven years in jail.

Quantities of cocaine and ecstasy, more than £100,000 in cash and hydraulic presses used to press cocaine into bricks were seized as part of a series of raids on properties in South Hetton, Easington Lane, New Herrington, Sunderland, South Shields and Washington.

Police said after they were jailed in January 2019 that the case “sends out a clear message that we will not tolerate criminality of this nature in our force area”.

Detective Chief Inspector Nicola Lawrence, who led the Operation Sidra investigation, said: “This organised crime gang were involved in bringing huge amounts of Class A drugs into the East Durham area and beyond.

“Through years of hard work and investigation, and with the support of local people who came forward with vital pieces of information, we have been able to disrupt and destroy this particular network who thought they could get away with blighting their communities through their illicit trade.”

Casey and Anderson are also appealing against the length of their Teesside Crown Court sentences.