Scots drugs mule involved in £7m heroin plot ordered to pay back £42,000 dirty cash

Daily Record

a day ago

Christopher Heaney, from Anstruther in Fife, was jailed for nine years for his involvement in a £7m cross-border heroin conspiracy last year.
A Scots drugs mule who flooded the UK with millions of pounds worth of heroin has been ordered to pay back just £42,000.
Christopher Heaney, 48, from Anstruther in Fife, was jailed for nine years for his involvement in a £7m cross-border heroin conspiracy last year. Heaney, alongside four others, were busted by cops following the arrest of a former police officer in May 2022.
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Steven Creasey, an ex-police officer who had also worked for the Royal Navy, was stopped while driving his vehicle to Fife having already travelled from his home in Cardiff to Liverpool the same day. A drugs dog sniffed out a professionally installed hide under the passenger seat of his car, which was found to contain a 5kg stash of heroin and one kilogram of adulterant.
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A burner phone also found in his possession revealed that the former cop had been operating as a professional drugs courier engaged by the heads of a gang based in Liverpool.
The police investigation, known as Operation Solon, led to the arrests of Christopher Brannan, 38, and Stephen Hopkins, 59, who collected wholesale amounts of heroin.
The drugs were then distributed for onward supply across the UK by Heaney, Creasey, Kevin Thomson, 45, and Jeffrey Hickson, 61.
Brannan would launder the profits through the bank account of his partner Kirsty Murphy, 36.
Subsequent raids were carried out at homes in Cardiff, Liverpool, Scotland and Northumberland towards the end of 2022.
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Significant items were found at the addresses, including expensive jewellery, heroin, cocaine, adulterants, opium, cannabis grows, and metal moulds for pressing powder into blocks.
All five defendants pleaded guilty prior to trial at Cardiff Crown Court in February last year.
The gang members were jailed for a combination of 57 years and 2 months.
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A Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) hearing was held at the same court earlier this week.
It heard how despite profiting around £125,000 as part of the operation, Heaney was ordered to pay back a fraction of £42,000
Judge Lucy Crowther ordered him to pay the sum within three months.
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If he fails to do so, he will face an additional 18 months in jail.
Speaking after sentencing, Detective Inspector Christopher McGlinchey of Police Scotland said: "This case underlines our collaborative efforts to dismantle organised crime networks that span regions.
"The significant amount of drugs trafficked by this group had the potential to inflict serious harm on our communities.
"The success of Operation Solon demonstrates strong partnership working between Police Scotland, Tarian ROCU and other partner agencies. It also reinforces our commitment to the UK's Serious and Organised Crime Strategy.
"Organised crime has no place in our society and we will continue to work relentlessly to bring those responsible to justice."