Scott Hughes
Conspiring to supply class A drugs and money laundering *
Sentence
8 years and 6 months imprisonment
Scott Hughes was a significant member of a class A drugs gang involved in the supply of cocaine, heroin, and cannabis, operating under Operation Webber. The gang made huge profits, leading to luxury lifestyles with properties in desirable Merseyside postcodes. Hughes was observed meeting drug couriers, including one at Speke retail park where 4kg of cocaine was later seized, and another at the Suites hotel in Kirkby where 2.2kg of cocaine was recovered. His fingerprints were found on £53,000 seized from a courier. He fled the UK in May 2011 after police raided his £1,100 per month converted barn, evading capture for five years by hiding in Dubai and Benidorm, Spain, where he worked menial jobs under a false name. He was arrested at Brussels airport in Belgium using a fake passport during a joint operation by the National Crime Agency, Belgian Federal Police, and Merseyside Police. The conspiracy spanned 18 months, involved nearly two dozen people, and had links to Newcastle, Carlisle, Scotland, Malaga, Amsterdam, and Geneva for drug deals.
Admitted conspiring to supply class A drugs and money laundering. Judge David Aubrey KC noted his heavy involvement, playing a managing role in the conspiracy. Prior convictions for possessing a firearm in Holland and drug dealing in Scotland.