Mum ferried cocaine across the north of England for underworld drug lord as part of £2.5m trafficking ring
Ceri O'Hara, 36, who has been jailed for five years, was said to be 'vital component' in the racket
A MUM of two has been jailed for ferrying cocaine across the North of England for an underworld drug lord.
Former Catholic high school pupil Ceri O’Hara, 36, was said to be a “vital component” in the £2.5million trafficking racket, masterminded by a Mr Big based in Yorkshire.
Undercover detectives secretly tracked O’Hara and her driver Chrissie Elstob, 35, as they completed a bag drop in Manchester.
Officers later swooped on a red Ford Fiesta being driven by the man who carried out the pick-up and found the sports holdall contained 12kg of cocaine worth £1.92m.
Manchester Crown Court heard O’Hara, from Pontefract, West Yorks who admitted conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, had carried out the bag drop after suffering a previous history of domestic abuse plus anxiety and depression.
She has since got engaged to her boyfriend.
Mother of four Elstob, also of Pontefract said she had a number of health conditions including chronic fatigue and severe asthma.
Both were said to be involved in the “very slick transfer of drugs” from one courier to another arranged by a “fixer”.
Details of the women’s cases emerged on Wednesday as the gang’s ringleader Marcus Anderson, 32, from Prestwich, was jailed for nine years after he admitted conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
O’Hara herself was jailed for five years last November whilst Elstob was locked up for three years after she was convicted of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs following a trial.
Their “boss”‘ David Mangham, 45, from Knottingley, Leeds who ran a security firm and a granite fitting business was jailed for 18 years after admitting conspiracy to supply cocaine and possessing a prohibited weapon.
Police said the arrests followed a major investigation by an elite team of detectives specialising in tackling organised crime.
On May 20 last year undercover officers watched as a suspect collected the bag from O’Hara and her driver Elstob – having earlier received a phone call saying the password for the handover was “Tevez”.
Twenty minutes after the switch his red Fiesta was stopped and inside the holdall was cocaine with a purity of 84 to 88 per cent.
O’Hara claimed she had played a “limited” role by acting as a courier in one transaction.
But, Judge Martin Rudland told her: “You were a vital component in the transfer of this large amount of drugs.
“I don’t have to remind you about the effects these addictive drugs have, which are flooding our streets.
“This was a sophisticated, well organised and very well equipped operation.”
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