Drug trafficker who fled to Spain after £900k plot unravelled caught 'by chance' in UK
Officers swooped on Storey's home but he escaped and went on the run for almost 23 months. The 49-year-old was then spotted by chance in Chester and arrested, after his accomplices had earlier been caught in a Mold pub car park.
Today a judge at Caernarfon Crown Court jailed Storey, of Fulwood Park, south Liverpool, for 12 years and seven months for conspiracy to import a class A drug between January 1 and May 5, 2020. You can sign up for all the latest court stories here
Prosecutor Andrew Jones said EncroChat messages were linked to the importation of heroin. He said Storey was involved in a "dummy run" using the "Transglobal Holland" service.
An accomplice known as "SportyOwl" said they were going to "smash it" when they continued with real drugs. An address in Ormskirk, West Lancashire, was used to operate from.
Prosecutor Mr Jones said the first delivery was sent but it was intercepted. Police found it contained 9.45kg of heroin. The court heard police investigations showed easyJet records proved that Storey had flown to Spain several times during the conspiracy.
In October 2021 police went to Storey's home but he escaped and went "effectively on the run until almost 23 months later when he was detained by chance in Chester".
Investigators in the National Crime Agency, on Operation Venetic, had discovered the group was importing heroin from Spain and the Netherlands via mail courier services.
Heroin was delivered to rented offices for fake companies in Huntingdon, Northampton, Milton Keynes and Swindon, before being dispatched to contacts in Liverpool and North Wales.
Storey, using the handle 'RichJay', was the group's conduit to the supplier in Spain, and arranged delivery of heroin to the UK. In May 2020, NCA officers, assisted by North Wales Police, arrested two of Storey's crime group - Tyrone Holbrook-Harris, 31, of Buckley, and Darren Barrett, 45, of Mold - in a pub car park in Mold.
The men were caught in possession of a parcel containing 9.45 kilos of heroin, worth £475,000. The arrests caused alarm amongst the group, who subsequently sent EncroChat messages on the day, including one from an unknown individual who told the user 'Syruproad': 'That NCA don't f*ck about."
Syruproad was identified by the NCA as Dylan Sanger, 38, of Ellesmere Port. He and Stephen Hunt, 64 of Great Oxenden, were arrested by the NCA in August and July 2020.
While the four arrested men were charged, the NCA continued working to find out the person behind the 'RichJay' username. By October 2021 they knew this was Storey and executed a warrant at his home in Fulwood Park, however Storey absconded moments before.
By the time his four associates had been jailed for more than 30 years in total in December 2021, Storey had travelled to southern Spain using a fraudulently obtained passport.
He was ultimately apprehended when he returned to the UK. In September 2023, a Cheshire Police constable responding to a report of an assault in Chester city centre, spoke with Storey at the scene. The astute officer identified that Storey was wanted by the NCA, and immediately arrested the man.
Storey was subsequently charged with importing and supplying heroin on 24 September 2023.
Today at Caernarfon Crown Court Paul Mason, defending, said his client had been 44 at the time of the offences and is 49 now. He had operated a legitimate fishing equipment business called Ridge Monkey which was unconnected to his offences.
He said Storey is in a relationship and has three adult sons. He has been "reliable and calm" while on remand in prison and is in a position of trust there.
The judge Her Honour Nicola Jones noted that in total 18kg of drugs were discovered worth £306,000 or up to £900,000 if in street deals. She imposed 12-year and seven month jail terms for each of conspiracy to import a Class A drug and for conspiracy to supply a Class A drug, with one term running concurrently.
She also told Storey, who appeared from a prison room on a video link, that it was "sad" to see someone of his background in court and thanked him for the "dignity" he had shown during the proceedings.
After the sentencing Luke Seldon, NCA lead investigating officer, said: 'Our investigation exposed that Storey was an essential component in the importation of almost a million pounds-worth of heroin. Storey was point-person for the supplier in Spain and managed logistics for movement of the heroin into and around the UK.
'More deaths are associated with heroin than any other drug, so the National Crime Agency prioritises identifying and arresting those responsible for making it available in the UK.
'We work extremely closely with police across the UK and world to ensure we hold organised criminals to account. In this case, justice caught up with Storey thanks to determined NCA investigators and a vigilant Cheshire Police officer.'
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