Black Country County drug gang jailed for more than 40 years

A criminal organization that operated two Class A County Lines drug routes, exploiting vulnerable community members to travel from the Black Country to Blackpool and Telford, has been sentenced to over four decades in prison. Between 2018 and 2021, the drug lines which operated out of Tipton and Walsall were run for three years. Over 10 kg of Class A drugs, including heroin and crack cocaine, with a street value of more than £1 million, are believed to have been sold by the gang during that period.

Sylvanus Coker and Tobeijah Atkinson led the 10-member County Lines gang. They hired members of their gang to sell drugs to the residents of Telford and Blackpool, and they organized, managed, and directed the lines. On June 14, 2018, when police stopped a BMW on the M54, they found the "Avon Line." Officers discovered two cell phones connected to the line, 47 wraps of cocaine, and 17 wraps of heroin inside.

Sylvanus Coker, Tobeijah Atkinson, Dean Groom.

One week later, a man riding in a private hire car into Telford was pulled over and searched by West Mercia Police. He had 12 wraps of heroin and 32 wraps of crack cocaine when they were discovered. A Nokia phone that had incoming messages from the "Avon line," which advertised drugs for sale, was also taken by the officers. The recovery of phones and SIM cards for both drug lines, along with other phone evidence, was essential in establishing the gang member’s guilt.

Scott Louden, Stephen Wright.

A total of ten members of the gang were sentenced last week at Birmingham Crown Court for their involvement in the drug trade. Atkinson received a nine-year sentence, and Coker received a fifteen-year and six-month sentence. DC Christopher Bradley, from WMROCU, said: “Led by Coker and Atkinson, the gang peddled heroin and crack cocaine worth £1 million into communities in Telford and Blackpool”. They targeted the most vulnerable, ruining lives and blighting communities, we are pleased this gang has been taken off our streets and are now spending time behind bars.