Four members of an organised crime group have been jailed for more than 24 years for their part in running a network supplying drugs.

Police say the gang imported around 25 kilos of cocaine in 2020 and supplied it in Watford, Borehamwood, Essex, and Luton.

In May 2020, Alfie Mancini, 34, of Fore Street in Hertford, was stopped by police and found to have almost a kilo of cocaine hidden in a secret compartment in the back of his van.

A short time later Mancini’s partner, Leanne Campo, 37, was also stopped driving her Smart car, where a holdall was found which contained £54,820 in cash, electronic scales and a small amount of cocaine.

Interrogation of EncroChat, encrypted phone app the group used to communicate with each other, identified 35-year-old Joseph Reardon, of Sheldon Square, London, as a courier, who worked with Mancini to supply the cash and cocaine to other EncroChat users.

Lee Mussett, 46, of Abbots Road, Abbots Langley, was also identified through this data as another member of the crime group.

Following an investigation by Hertfordshire Constabulary, Mancini, Campo, Reardon, and Mussett were sentenced at Luton Crown Court on May 6 for conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Mancini was jailed for 10 years and six months, while Reardon received an eight year and eight month sentence.

Mussett was jailed for six years and four months while Campo will serve four years.

Detective Inspector Sarah Corr said: “This group moved a significant amount of drugs throughout the county, but also into surrounding areas, generating large amounts of money. Using the data extracted from EncroChat to support our investigations, we have been able to identify and arrest dozens of individuals involved in dealing drugs, seizing large amounts of drugs that would otherwise have ended up on the streets.

“Organised crime groups use violence, supply drugs and commit a whole range of crimes that pose a real threat to the community. Operation Relentless is Hertfordshire Constabulary’s response to this on-going threat. As part of this work, we depend on information from members of the public to help us crack down on drug-related crime. Any information you can provide, no matter how small it may seem, could help us to identify and apprehend drug dealers.”