A GANG responsible for the supply of millions of pounds worth of drugs onto the streets of Hampshire have been jailed for a total of 40 years.

Three men were found guilty of a major drugs plot that saw them responsible for selling £12m worth of cocaine and ecstasy across the country, including Hampshire.

Detectives in Hampshire worked alongside their colleagues in Lancashire to bring down the operation, which saw the drugs transported to the south coast.

Gareth Mawdsley, 34, Gerrard Gandy, 34, and James Moran, 33, all from Lancashire where the operation was based, were sentenced to 16, 14 and 10 years respectively at Liverpool Crown Court for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and money laundering offences.

It follows the sentencing of John Green, 30, from Lancashire, who was jailed for six years in November 2014 for possession of cocaine with intent to supply.

They were arrested following Operation Taurus, an investigation by Lancashire Constabulary’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) which began in March 2014.

It was established that Gandy and Mawdsley were the leaders of the drugs gang, while Moran and Green were couriers of both drugs and cash.

The operation led to the recovery of 53kgs of cocaine, 150,000 ecstasy tablets and over £250,000 in cash in total.

The drugs had a street value of over £12 million.

As part of the investigation, officers made Lancashire Police’s largest ever cocaine seizure after they raided a caravan on Fleet Lane in the St Helens area of Merseyside and seized 35kgs of high purity cocaine and over £200,000 in cash.

Lancashire’s SOCU worked with Hampshire Police throughout the operation to investigate the supply of cocaine across England, particularly Skelmersdale, Lancashire, Merseyside and Hampshire.

Gareth Mawdsley’s partner, Kelly Carmichael, was also sentenced to eight months imprisonment suspended for two years plus 240 hours unpaid work for assisting an offender.

Graeme Hawkes, 29, is due to be sentenced for the same offence at Liverpool Crown Court on August 18.

DI Martin Kane of Lancashire Constabulary’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit said: “Our investigation uncovered a large scale cocaine supply network between Lancashire, Merseyside and the South Coast and we have worked in partnership with Hampshire Police throughout.

“The drugs seizures we have made throughout this operation will dramatically reduce its supply and the harm cocaine causes across Lancashire and the North West of England.

“The activities of drug dealers can have such a negative effect on our communities. They can ruin lives, fuel other crime and can instil fear in our neighbourhoods.

“We will not tolerate the supply and selling of drugs in our county and I hope that the sentences handed down today send out a clear message that we are determined to bring to justice those who are involved in the supply of drugs in our county and beyond and we will continue to tackle organised crime on this scale.”