Man jailed after being caught with £60k of heroin and crack cocaine at Wigan railway station

The discovery was made by British Transport Police (BTP) County Lines Taskforce officers at Wigan North Western.

Paul Green, 38, and of Prince Albert Mews, Liverpool, appeared Bolton Crown Court on Wednesday 10 February where he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply drugs of Class A status.

On Thursday 17 June, a judge sentenced him to 40 months imprisonment.

Green first came to the attention of plain-clothed County Lines Taskforce officers at Liverpool Lime Street station on the morning of on Wednesday 13 January as he wasn’t wearing a face covering within the station.

One of the officers then saw Green later that morning alighting a train at Wigan station, and enquired as to why he wasn’t wearing a face covering as he travelled on the service.

He initially stated to officers that he was travelling from Liverpool to Wigan before becoming evasive and admitting that he was actually travelling to Aberdeen.

Green continued to be uncooperative with the officers and was subsequently searched under Section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act.

He was found to be in possession of a large quantity of heroin and crack cocaine and two mobile phones before being arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply drugs of Class A status and conveyed to police custody for questioning.

The Class A drugs seized at the Greater Manchester station were identified as 544 grams of heroin and 101 grams of crack cocaine with a street value of more than £60,000.

BTP Detective Inspector, Matt Davies, said: “Clearly Green was using the railway to export drugs from Liverpool to Aberdeen for his own financial gain.

“His brazen efforts to travel a considerable distance with a large quantity of Class A drugs did not pay dividends thanks to the proactive work of our officers.

“Their efforts on that morning have resulted in potentially harmful heroin and crack cocaine out of circulation and Green spending his immediate future behind bars.

“Whether you see us or not, our dedicated officers are patrolling the rail network daily to tackle the movement of drugs and illicit cash across the country and disrupt the County Lines business model.

“If you’re travelling on the network and see something that doesn’t look right – text us on 61016 or call us on 0800 40 50 40. In an emergency, always dial 999.”

BTP’s County Lines Taskforce – a police team dedicated to tackling organised criminals using the railway to transport drugs – was setup with Home Office funding in December 2019.

A key aim of the team is to identify and safeguard vulnerable children and adults often exploited by these organised criminals to transport drugs and cash between import and export locations, which can be hundreds of miles apart.

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