An undercover blitz on drugs gangs flooding a town with heroin and cocaine was sparked by the bloody killing of a man who tried to ‘tax’ two teenage dealers.

Lee Briggs was stabbed in a Widnes park after he held a knife to the throat of one of the 15-year-old boys and ordered him to hand over his Class A haul.

The 43-year-old’s death prompted an investigation that led to the boys, both from Liverpool, being locked up for manslaughter.

It also formed the platform for a landmark police probe as detectives sought a long-term solution to the hellish consequences of Merseyside gangs seemingly operating without fear of the police nor care for the men, women and children whose lives they were destroying.

Eighteen months on from the sentencing of the two young killers that Cheshire Police probe came to a climax this week as 33 men and women were locked up for a combined total of more than 180 years for bringing chaos to the streets of Widnes.

Lee Briggs, 43, died after suffering what a post mortem found to be a single stab wound at St Marie's Community Park near Lugsdale Road on May 16.
Lee Briggs, 43, died after suffering what a post mortem found to be a single stab wound at St Marie's Community Park near Lugsdale Road on May 16.

The court process was so extensive it took Judge Denis Watson, QC, a full week to deal with all of the criminals, a group that included three others who narrowly avoided jail spells.

And the evidence against the three dozen criminals dealt with at Liverpool Crown Court was so overwhelming only one of them claimed innocence.

That suspect, Marney Styles, was locked up with her accomplices after her claims fell on deaf ears.

PARK KILLING WAS LAST STRAW FOR COMMUNITY SUFFERING BLIGHT OF DRUGS

Briggs died as a result of a single stab wound suffered after he confronted the youngsters in St Marie’s Community Park in May 2016.

The boys were dealing in bushes when he approached them and, according to witnesses, wielded a blade of his own and demanded cash and drugs.

The horrific clash was the most shocking incident to highlight the scale of the trouble being caused by the presence of drugs gangs, typically run from Merseyside, as they vied for supremacy in the town.

A knife seized from a drug dealer by Operation Mainframes officers in Widnes
A knife seized from a drug dealer by Operation Mainframes officers in Widnes

But it was not the only example of brutality - with a man suffering “life-changing” injuries after a blade attack in the Ridsdale area also described in court.

Offering an overview of the situation Simon Parry, who prosecuted this week’s case, said: “The impact of these groups’ drug dealing activities in Widnes were significant and set out in a community impact statement provided by Detective Inspector Ian Whiley of the Widnes Local Policing Unit.

“The statement noted a marked increase at the time in drug related anti-social behaviour, threats and the type of acquisitive crime that is often associated with the supply of drugs... There was a perception the behaviour was unchallenged.”

RUTHLESS GANGS PREYED ON THE VULNERABLE WITH TACTICS OF EXPLOITATION

In a bid to smash the gangs responsible, Cheshire Police launched an undercover operation that went on to reveal how the town was being flooded with Class A drugs by ruthless crooks.

Police carry out a raid in Widnes as part of a major operation

Months of surveillance work, the intensive use of number plate recognition and mobile phone tracking technology and the bravery of officers who posed as desperate addicts unveiled a network of gangs seeking to get rich through the addictions of their vulnerable victims.

The gangs typically operated along a County Lines model - an increasingly common tactic where big city drug dealers move beyond their traditional patches to secure safer markets.

The National Crime Agency regards Merseyside as one of the main hubs for such gangs, with Cheshire - along with Cumbria, parts of Lancashire, North Wales and Devon - one of the areas where drug suppliers from the area hold most sway.

And in Widnes, at least seven supply lines were discovered.

Bosses operating on home soil would control phonelines - known as grafts - through which they would advertise illicit stock and receive orders.

They would then instruct locally-based street dealers - sometimes associates, often addicts working to pay off drug debts - to carry out the transactions.

A network of drivers and couriers would replenish stocks stored at the homes of customers manipulated into allowing their properties to be used as drug dens in a process known as cuckooing - named after the way cuckoos steal the nests of other birds.

Drug dealers Blaine Megarry and Sean McClune, both of Cassino Road in Huyton, dealing drugs in a children's playground
Drug dealers Blaine Megarry and Sean McClune, both of Cassino Road in Huyton, dealing drugs in a children's playground

The gangs uncovered as part of the investigation, codenamed Operation Mainframes, adopted sickening methods to make cash.

In one case a 14-year-old girl was found to be selling drugs for gang bosses.

Others dealt in playgrounds and undercover police also witnessed multiple deals being carried out in front of babies and watching children.

FLARE MESSAGES AND FRIDGE BLOCKADES - HOW WERE THE 'GRAFTS' OPERATED?

The Jay Team

Of the gangs busted by police, one of the most significant was known as the Jay Team.

Operating from Bootle, detectives monitored almost daily travel from Liverpool to Widnes and Northwich - where they had a second ‘Freddie’ graft - on behalf of them.

The Widnes plot used six separate phone numbers which were changed regularly and passed onto customers in a flare text message - a message sent out to multiple numbers.

Jordan Swinnerton, 25, of June Street in Bootle, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Jordan Swinnerton, 25, of June Street in Bootle, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Dylan Swinnerton, 27, of June Street in Bootle, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang and a separate incident of violent disorder

Flare messages were also used to advertise drugs, typically sold near the homes of local dealers in the Ditton area.

Led by brothers Jordan and Dylan Swinnerton, police believe the Widnes and Northwich networks moved between 2.88kg and 3.84kg of heroin and cocaine - valued between £202,000 and £384,000, over the course of the police operation.

The Shotty Team

This gang, the bulk of which are from Liverpool, dealt themselves and sold most of their drugs in the area of the Sidings Court home of member Stevie Holloway.

The door to the property was barricaded by a fridge, preventing access for representatives of the rental group that owned the property to carry out inspections. Once the Liverpool-based members of the team arrived at Sidings Court flares would go out to local users who would be directed to a communal area of the building.

One member of the gang, Sean McClune, was arrested in Widnes with more than a thousand pounds in cash, drugs and a knife in his possession.

'Graft' phones seized from drug dealers during a massive police operation in Widnes
'Graft' phones seized from drug dealers during a massive police operation in Widnes

A police drug expert noted the graft phone was active on a daily basis and an average of 98 flares were sent from it per day. He estimated a turnover of between 2.16kg and 3.32kg of heroin and crack over this period to create earnings of almost £430,000.

The Ricco Team

Ringleaders Joshua Quinton and Joel Evans oversaw the Ricco group, which operated around Arley Drive and sold drugs in a park often used by children.

Joel Evans, 26, of Ruskin Street, Kirkdale was jailed after a massive crackdown on drugs gangs operating in Widnes
Joel Evans, 26, of Ruskin Street, Kirkdale was jailed after a massive crackdown on drugs gangs operating in Widnes
Joshua Quinton, 26, Captains Lane, Litherland, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang operating in Widnes
Joshua Quinton, 26, Captains Lane, Litherland, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang operating in Widnes

They also ran a second supply line in Exeter - where on one day their graft phone was recorded sending 189 flares within 22 minutes, then a further 133 flares just 19 minutes later.

Over the 101 day period this team were monitored it is believed they supplied between 3.93kg and 6.06kg of Class A drugs, with a street value of between £262,000 and £404,000.

CHAINSAW TURF WAR IN CHURCHYARD

While so many gangs were operating in Widnes, there was no sense of co-ordination - the town had not been carved up into patches by drug bosses looking to work together.

Instead, the unsophisticated patchwork of gangs would often find themselves in competition with rivals.

Beyond the Ridsdale stabbing and the Briggs killing, the most shocking example of this was in Northwich, where horrified witnesses watched members of the Jay Team - Dylan Swinnerton, Jack Storey and Michael Price - involved in an incident where a running chainsaw was wielded during a tense stand-off in St Helens churchyard.

A chainsaw seized from drug dealers after a turf war stand off in a churchyard
A chainsaw seized from drug dealers after a turf war stand off in a churchyard
Jack Storey, 24, of Priorsfield Road, Woolton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang and over a separate incident of violent disorder
Jack Storey, 24, of Priorsfield Road, Woolton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang and over a separate incident of violent disorder
Michael Price, 29, of Bowden Road in Garston was jailed for his role in a drugs gang and over a separate incident of violent disorder
Michael Price, 29, of Bowden Road in Garston was jailed for his role in a drugs gang and over a separate incident of violent disorder

Mr Parry, prosecuting, said: “There was a confrontation between their group and an unidentified group of males and during the course of that confrontation a chainsaw was produced from the boot of the vehicle and it was wielded by Mr Storey whilst running. The unidentified males, believed to be local, then made off from the scene.”

The gang were arrested outside the churchyard and the chainsaw was seized by police.

MISFITS AND OUTCASTS KNOWN TO THE POLICE AND WARNED OVER ATTITUDE IN THE DOCK

Of the 33 locked up this week, many were already known to police in the North West and had already served jail terms.

And Judge Watson was caused to issue repeated warnings over the behaviour of the defendants in the dock after several associates were caught joking during proceedings.

Stevie Holloway, 26, of Cronton Road, Widnes, jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Stevie Holloway, 26, of Cronton Road, Widnes, jailed for his role in a drugs gang

The roll-call of convicts included Stevie Holloway - who had clocked up 17 convictions for 26 offences and had been jailed twice for aggravated vehicle taking.

Gary Fagan and Blaine Megarry had previously been jailed together for robbing an Audi and crashing it into a Wirral train station during a high speed police chase, while John Hargreaves’ previous convictions included bomb hoaxes and possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear.

The 40-year-old, said to have worn body armour over fears he would be stabbed by rivals, was also jailed this week for a shocking aggravated burglary in Blackburn.

Blaine Megarry, 26, of Cassino Road, Huyton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Blaine Megarry, 26, of Cassino Road, Huyton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Gary Fagin, 28, of Ladstone Towers, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Gary Fagin, 28, of Ladstone Towers, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
John Hargreaves, 40, was produced from prison to be jailed for aggravated burglary and drug dealing
John Hargreaves, 40, was produced from prison to be jailed for aggravated burglary and drug dealing
Sean McClune, 20, Cassino Road, Huyton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang
Sean McClune, 20, Cassino Road, Huyton, was jailed for his role in a drugs gang

Ricco gang member Joshua Quinton’s 21 convictions for 47 offences - including burglaries - made for a “depressing summary” according to Judge Watson.

His accomplice Joel Evans had 20 convictions for 28 offences - including a three year burglary sentence.

WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

The mass sentencing of the past week marks the conclusion of Cheshire Police’s operation.

Work to prevent drugs gangs regaining the grip they had on the town began after the Operation Mainframes suspects were targeted in dawn raids back in December, with most of the gang placed in custody for Christmas as a result.

More doors have been smashed through by police in Widnes since then. In May, Merseyside Police raids targeting a gang whose heartland was in nearby Speke saw specialist officers in action just over the Cheshire border.

More than £1,000 seized from a drug dealer during a stop in Widnes
More than £1,000 seized from a drug dealer during a stop in Widnes

And community leaders are well aware that, when one - or in this case seven - crime networks are removed from the streets work must begin to ensure new outfits do not automatically fill the vacuum of power left behind.

Determined to build on the investigation’s success David Keane, police and crime commissioner for Cheshire, said: “I would like to commend the work of officers who have worked tirelessly on this investigation to dismantle this drugs ring at its core and bring its perpetrators to justice.

“The exploitation of anyone in our communities, and in particular vulnerable children, will not be tolerated by police in Cheshire. Every day officers from the force are reacting to intelligence provided by communities to seize drugs, in many cases before the criminals have the opportunity to deal them.

“I would encourage anyone in Cheshire who has suspicions of drug activity or other types of exploitation taking place in their community to report it to Cheshire Police, and I would like to reassure them that they’ll be given protection from officers and partner agencies to ensure they’re no longer in a vulnerable position.”

*Concerns over drug dealing can be reported anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111