Three found guilty of £1m drugs crime
Two men and a woman have been found guilty of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs after more than £1million worth of ecstasy was discovered by police in Staffordshire.
Charles Hendrie and his girlfriend Leah Parkes, who were approached at the services at Hilton Park by police and arrested, were both found guilty of the charge by a jury at Stafford Crown Court.
A jury of seven women and five men also found Adib Asfour guilty of conspiracy to supply class A drugs yesterday.
A unanimous decision was made by the jury to convict Hendrie, but both Parkes and Asfour were convicted after the jury delivered a majority verdict of 10 for and two against after deliberating for eight hours and 21 minutes.
They were remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date, yet to be fixed.
Mark Harrington and Chloe Arrowsmith were both found not guilty of the offence.
Judge Michael Challinor thanked the jury for their work in the trial, adding: "The result of this case is going to be substantial sentences in prison. This was a very serious case."
During the trial, the court heard how Hendrie and Parkes had travelled down from Manchester to Stafford in a hired van on November 6 last year.
The couple stopped at the Holiday Inn in Acton Gate where they were joined by Mr Harrington, who had travelled down in a separate car.
Mr Matthew Brook, prosecuting, had told the jury that Hendrie and Mr Harrington set off separately in convoy towards Brownhills, while Parkes booked into a room at the hotel.
The court was tod that Mr Harrington had stopped in the High Street while Hendrie continued to a warehouse in Maybrook Road to collect the MDMA, most commonly known as ecstasy.
The court was told Hendrie, aged 30, of Prospect Place, Bury, then went back towards Mr Harrington and they returned to the hotel in Stafford, where they swapped vehicles.
During the trial, Mr Harrington, 28, of Wensely Road, Salford, said Hendrie had asked him for a favour after realising he needed to hire a van and he had followed Hendrie and Parkes in a car, intending to drive the van back to Manchester.
He said after Hendrie picked up the package the pair had opened it in the back of the van and he through it was 'weed' but he had known nothing about the drugs.
Once at Acton Gate, Asfour, 26, of Kinlet Close, Wolverhampton, arrived and went to the room with another unidentified man but left 10 minutes later.
Hendrie and Parkes, 28, of Prospect Place, Bury, left half-an-hour later with one suitcase and they were approached at the services at Hilton Park by police and arrested.
The second suitcase was found at the hotel.
The following day, it is claimed an email was sent to the Holiday Inn claiming to be Parkes saying a bag had been left behind. It stated it was to be collected by Ms Arrowsmith, 25, of Manor Royal Drive, London, who was later duly arrived and went on to be arrested.
Ms Arrowsmith also maintained her innocence throughout the trial.
