A county lines drug dealer who sold heroin and cocaine in Stevenage has been jailed for more than four years.

Larry Ansell, of West Lane, Pirton, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years behind bars at St Albans Crown Court, for six counts of possession with intent to supply heroin and crack cocaine.

He was jailed for the following offences, with the sentences to run concurrently:

  • 20 months each for two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A, crack cocaine and heroin.
  • 35 months for two counts of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, crack cocaine and heroin.
  • 56 months for the final offences of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, crack cocaine and heroin.

After a stop and search by officers in June 2021, the 20-year-old was found with 80 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine hidden inside a tobacco pouch in his pants.

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While on bail for this offence, in October last year, mobile phone data revealed links to a county lines drug network operating in Stevenage. It is believed he was sending up to 80 messages a day to drug users in the area.

Officers then launched an operation to tackle his illegal activities and conducted a warrant at a private address in Drury Lane.

Ansell was inside the property with the county line phone, a stash of crack cocaine and heroin with an estimated value of more than £2,000, and a 'Rambo' style knife.

After pleading not guilty at an early court hearing, and claiming he was a victim of modern slavery, he was subsequently remanded to prison and then bailed to an address outside Hertfordshire with a strict curfew.

Before a trial could take place though, further investigations revealed he had broken his bail conditions, returning to Stevenage to run a new county lines drug dealing operation.

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Ansell was eventually traced to a flat in Canterbury Way after Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Integrated Offender Management Unit launched a manhunt, supported by the Specialist Investigation Team, Operational Intelligence Team and the Operational Support Group.

As officers closed in to arrest him, he attempted to flee, as well as trying to conceal evidence by throwing more than 100 wraps of class A drugs out of the window.

Officers had surrounded the building, preventing his escape, and he was arrested, with cash and a large hunting knife seized from the address.

PC Jackson, from the Integrated Offender Management Unit, said: "Despite numerous arrests and investigations against him, Ansell thought he could act with impunity and carry on drug dealing.

"Ansell was offered support with rehabilitation which he declined, and even tried to present himself as a victim of slavery.

"However, our active investigations against him revealed repeated attempts to set up county drug lines, bringing misery to vulnerable people in Stevenage.

"He has now been brought to justice and has some time to think about his actions and where they have got him."