A drug gang has been jailed for a combined 100 years after cops uncovered guns and £746,000 worth of drugs hidden inside storage containers.
The organised crime group used five units on an industrial estate to stash firearms, ammunition, cash and huge quantities of narcotics.
Police discovered heroin, crack cocaine, cocaine, MDMA and cannabis being supplied to street dealers.
READ MORE: Herd of cows fall off CLIFF as hero fisherman tows them to safety
Five viable firearms were also recovered – including three handguns and a Broomhandle Mauser – alongside a huge quantity of ammunition.
Gang ringleader Jamie Smith, 37, has now been jailed for 22 years and eight months, as reported by Need To Know.
A judge condemned his possession of the “lethal weapons”, which were “highly susceptible to falling into the wrong hands”.
The sophisticated operation saw different members of the gang given access to individual storage containers depending on their position in its hierarchy.
Detectives launched their investigation in August 2025 and began monitoring members making repeated trips to the site in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire.
They were spotted dropping off and collecting packages, boxes and cash.
One key player, Leah Hopkinson, 31, visited the containers as many as four times a day during one three-month period.
Police believe she was supplying up to 600 wraps of Class A and B drugs every day to street dealers.
The network predominantly supplied drugs around Mansfield but stretched as far as Hertfordshire and parts of Wales.
Smith was also observed moving large amounts of cash.
Then, in November 2025, police watched him move firearms between two storage containers just moments before officers swooped.
Warrants were executed across all five units.
Inside, cops discovered the five firearms, ammunition, a machete and other knives.
They also seized large quantities of drugs and cash alongside a drug press, scales, mixing agents and packaging associated with wholesale drug dealing.
Further searches were carried out at gang members’ homes.
At the property shared by Smith and his partner Shannon Lee Shaw, 31, officers discovered evidence including a drugs-line phone.
Another mobile was found wrapped in clingfilm and hidden behind a fence.
Messages on the device helped expose the gang’s drugs operation.
Police also seized designer clothing and thousands of pounds’ worth of motorbikes.
In total, officers recovered £48,038 in cash.
The drugs found on the day police struck were estimated to be worth £746,000.
Detective Inspector James McDonagh, of Nottinghamshire Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Task Force, said: “Many hours of detective work allowed us to dismantle this sophisticated criminal operation.
“Certain members of this gang were making large amounts of money and living lavish lifestyles funded by the misery of the drug users they exploited.
“They used five storage containers, with different levels of access, depending on the person’s role within the hierarchy of the gang.”
He said one unit was used for cash, another contained drugs and firearms, while others were used to package and deal drugs.
DI McDonagh added: “Jamie Smith was clearly prepared to enforce his business using the firearms found within one of the containers.
“Ultimately, whole communities will benefit from these criminals being put behind bars for a considerable period of time.”
Twelve members of the gang were sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday (24 Sep).
Judge John Sampson told them: “Class A drugs blight lives of individuals, wreck families, cause further crime and destroy communities.
“You were all involved in peddling this misery.”
Smith, of Breckbank, Mansfield, received the longest sentence of 22 years and eight months.
He had admitted three counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, conspiracy to supply Class B drugs and a string of firearms and ammunition offences.
Justin Gibson, 36, of Mansfield Woodhouse, was jailed for 17 years, while Kieran Rimmer, 37, of Clipstone, received 11 years and three months.
Anthony Lumley, 50, was jailed for eight years and one month, and Matthew Bryan, 35, received seven-and-a-half years.
Stefan Houston, 39, and Hopkinson were each jailed for six years.
Jack Smith, 25, was handed five years and 10 months, while Lee Shipman, 40, received five years and seven months.
Brennan Hayes, 22, was jailed for five years and four months, and Josh Harmieson, 33, received five years and three months.
Shaw was handed a four-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, after admitting to acquiring criminal property.
READ MORE: Rugby player 21 dies suddenly as club pays tribute to ‘well-loved’ player
