Shrewsbury drug dealers ordered to pay back over £75k

Two Shropshire men have been ordered to pay back over £75k under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) or face more time in prison.

The men were handed confiscation orders at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Friday 21 June after being jailed in September 2023 for multiple drugs offences.

On 28 April 2023, officers carried out a warrant at two properties in Shrewsbury where they found large quantity of class A drugs, cash, electronic devices, and high value items.

Drugs with an estimated street value of £100k-£120k and £72,916 in cash were seized during the warrants.

Lucas Bethell, 28, of Crowmere Green and Mackenzie Roughley, 24, of North Street in Shrewsbury were both charged with drugs offences.

Both pleaded guilty and were sentenced at Shrewsbury Crown Court on 29 September 2023.

They were both sentenced to six years for possession with intent to supply a class A drug.

At the POCA hearing last week Bethell was ordered to pay back £74,005 by Friday 26 July. If he doesn’t then two years will be added to his current custodial sentence.

Roughley was ordered to pay back £1,701 by Friday, 26 July, and will have one month added to his custodial sentence if he doesn’t repay his POCA.

Detective Inspector Dan Fenn said, “This is an excellent POCA results, and following a thorough investigation, we have been able to make sure that they will not benefit from their illicit gains from criminal activity.”