By One of UK’s most wanted who smuggled drugs into Grimsby sentenced to 15 years in prison
One of the UK’s most wanted criminals has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after smuggling nearly £1.5 million worth of drugs into Grimsby.
Joshua Dillon Hendry, formerly of Walton, Liverpool, was arrested on January 20 in Marbella by the Spanish police’s fugitive unit.
Just days after being named one of the UK’s most wanted fugitives, an off-duty police officer recognised Hendry and notified officers.
Hendry, 31, fled to Spain after being involved in a county lines conspiracy in which he transported heroin and cocaine from Liverpool to Grimsby along with his mother Leslie Aytoun and his brother Scott Hendry.
The family used the M62 as a route to peddle drugs and a phone line to tell drug users where they should meet dealers in Grimsby.
On Wednesday, Sheffield Crown Court heard how £1.38 million worth of crack cocaine and heroin was taken to Grimsby, with the money being taken back to Liverpool.
In December 2018, a black Skoda was stopped on the M62 after leaving Grimsby, with Joshua and his brother being the only occupants.
The vehicle was searched and no drugs were recovered but Hendry was found to be in possession of £11,000 in cash. He was arrested on suspicion of money laundering offences.
Humberside Police started to link Hendry to the conspiracy in December 2017, but evidence showed he was involved before that time.
The prosecution told the court that the operation ran between September 2017 and March 2019 – with Joshua Hendry taking a “hands-on approach”.
They added that Hendry didn’t trust the street dealers and oversaw the drugs being dealt.
In May 2018, police received information that heroin and crack cocaine were being supplied from an address in Grimsby.
Police searched the address and three men were arrested as a result. A further three men were seen running from the property and another two were detained.
Hendry was one of the men detained and had been trying to damage a mobile phone before his arrest. Messages on the phone showed he had previously given direction to others about dealing drugs.
Hendry then fled the country before his trial in March 2019 where he stood charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine in relation to the Grimsby offences.
Hendry was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment in his absence and spent three years in Spain before being arrested in January this year following an international arrest warrant.
After pleading guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply class A drugs, namely cocaine and heroin, Hendry was jailed for three months for absconding.
Judge Thomas jailed Hendry for a further five years, making his total sentence 15 years and three months.
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