Medway county line drug gang jailed as 11 people from London and Gillingham found guilty of supplying heroin and cocaine
14:28, 03 October 2019
updated: 14:57, 03 October 2019
The final member of a county lines drug gang has been jailed - bringing the total number of people sentenced to 11.
Omarie Whitter was sentenced today after nine other dealers who were caught supplying heroin and crack cocaine across Medway were locked up last week.
But one member of the gang escaped an immediate jail term and was given a suspended prison sentence.
Whitter, 20, of Tedder Road, South Croydon, was a runner for the self-styled Ace gang and found guilty after a trial at Woolwich Crown Court.
He will serve four and a half years behind bars.
The gang operated in the Towns between February 2016 and January 2017 and included three people from Gillingham.
Michaela Whiting, of High Street, Gillingham, was jailed for two years and 10 months and David Howarth, of Manor Street, Gillingham, was sentenced to two years and three months.
Frankie Lester, of Saunders Street, Gillingham, was sentenced to three years in prison.
The 36-year-old was found guilty of conspiring to supply heroin and crack cocaine following a trial which finished on Wednesday, June 26.
In total, the gang have been jailed for a combined 46 years and four months after the first 10 members were sentenced on Friday.
Police broke up the network after launching four raids at properties in the town during 2016.
'This brings to an end a complex investigation,' Det Con Danny James
Around 400 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine were seized from these warrants along with 11.8 grams of uncut crack cocaine.
Numerous mobile phones were also seized and their records provided officers with a gradual stream of information on the structure of the network.
The gang was led by Andre and Roshane McClymont - from Peartree Way, Greenwich, and Arbroath Road, Eltham, respectively - who would instruct runners to attend the house in Gillingham.
The property was cuckooed by the dealers, the practice of using a vulnerable person’s house as a local base to supply drugs into the community.
The pair’s DNA was detected on several wraps seized during the warrants at the houses in Gillingham.
Kent Police led the investigation under Operation Raptor.
Det Con Danny James, investigating officer for the case, said: "The sentencing of Omarie Whitter brings to an end a complex investigation that saw data from over 80 mobile phones analysed.
"Whitter had no lawful reason to be in the Medway towns and sought to make money out of communities affected by drug abuse.
"There is no place in Medway, or anywhere else in Kent, for offending of this nature and anyone involved in this activity should be aware that we have the resources, and capabilities, to bring them to justice."
Andre McClymont, 22, was sentenced to 11 years in prison while Roshane McClymont, 23, received five years and nine months.
Trevon McClymont, 19, of Camden Way, Thornton Heath, was sentenced to three years and five months, Jason Lutonadio, 20, of Harlington Road West, Feltham, was sentenced to three years and ten months, Cole Walters, 21, of Salters Hill, Norwood, was sentenced to four years and two months.
Darren Massay, 23, of Tulse Hill, Brixton, was sentenced to three years and seven months.
Jermaine Bennett, 18, of Chipstead Avenue, Thornton Heath, was sentenced to two years, suspended for two years.
