Five offenders are sentenced after an investigation finds they humiliated two vulnerable men.
Oliver Alves, Samet Eskisan and Finley Postill were all jailed for their roles in the Braintree drugs operation A man with learning difficulties was forced to strip naked by a gang of drug dealers who invaded his home and threw firecrackers at him as he slept.
The offenders ran a crack cocaine and heroin supply network in Braintree, Essex, called the "Diamond" line. Essex Police said they took over the man's home, spat on his walls, brought prostitutes to the property and made him sleep on the floor. Samet Eskisan, Finley Postill, Oliver Alves, Billy Rowley and Liam Biggs were handed a range of sentences at Chelmsford Crown Court, having admitted drug offences.
Postill, 22, of Coldnailhurst Avenue, Braintree - three years and four months in jailRowley, 21, of The Chase, Boreham - 18-month prison sentence, suspended for two yearsPolice said the gang used a method of "cuckooing", which involved targeting two vulnerable men, both living alone in one-bedroom flats, and using their homes as a drugs base. One of the victims was given heroin, a drug he had been clean from for more than a decade.
Officers were made aware of the abuse in late 2022 and arrested the offenders after forensic examinations of the properties. They said Biggs began to cry when he was informed of the police investigation, which uncovered deals for about 1kg of crack cocaine and heroin. Det Con Louise Townsend said: "There was only one motive behind their horrific behaviour. They did it simply for their own amusement, because they thought it was funny.
"The videos we've found of these boys and young men flashing cash and bragging about their lives paint an inaccurate picture of what it's like to be involved in county lines. A WhatsApp message sent to Alves by Postill detailed the abuse inflicted on one of the victimsEskisan, Alves, Postill and Biggs also pleaded guilty to putting the men in fear of violence by harassment.
A 10-year restraining order was made against each of the offenders at their sentencing on Wednesday, banning them from contacting either victim. 'Illegal' traveller plot was for sale on Facebook
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