Gang jailed for over 24 years after drugs lab found in village near Thirsk

Four men have been jailed for a total of 24 years and seven months after a drug manufacturing lab was discovered in a rural village near Thirsk.

In the early hours of 28 April 2020, North Yorkshire Police responded to concerns about suspicious activity taking place at a property in Husthwaite. On arrival they found two men in the process of manufacturing amphetamine oil, a significant amount of hazardous chemicals, noxious vapours coming from the property, laboratory equipment and £20,000 in cash.

Philip Lister and his brother-in-law, Ryan Beer were arrested at the scene. The subsequent police investigation found that Lister was using the now compromised EncroChat encrypted telephone / messaging system which the National Crime Agency has classified as a criminally dedicated secure communications platform designed for and used by criminals.

The resulting investigation by the force’s Organised Crime Unit and Intelligence Bureau led officers to two other suspects, Stephen Henry Singleton from Merseyside and Jordan Russell Blackburn from West Yorkshire, who were also using EncroChat.

The investigation found that Singleton, who was the director of a chemical company based in St Helens, and Blackburn who was the director of a cleaning solutions company based in West Yorkshire, were leading the operation. Lister was the ‘chef’ producing the drugs with the occasional help from Beer. 

Their criminal operation at the time of their arrest was capable of producing 523kg of street purity amphetamine.

While only small quantities of amphetamine were found to have been made at the property, twelve barrels of a pre-cursor chemical called MAPA were also present and had that been converted into amphetamine, it would have had a street value of over £5m. The property in Husthwaite had been rented by Lister for £1,100 per month and an outhouse had been converted into the chemical laboratory. 

The range of chemicals within the lab presented a risk to the defendants' health, those living close by and the officers who had to dismantle the operation and make the area safe. 

Singleton, 36, of York Road, Birkdale, Sefton; Blackburn, 34, of York Road, Leeds; and Beer, 30, of Chandos Mews, Leeds, were all found guilty by jury of conspiracy to produce amphetamine at Teesside Crown Court in December 2022.

They were jailed on 13 January 2023 but due to an outstanding court case involving Singleton in another area, the case could not be reported until now.  

Singleton was jailed for nine years and two months, Blackburn was jailed for eight years and nine months, and Beer was jailed for two years and four months.

Lister, 41, of Wykebeck Avenue, Osmandthorpe, Leeds was charged with conspiracy to produce amphetamine and money laundering. He pleaded guilty to both charges and was sentenced to four years and four months in prison. he was also sentenced on 13 January. 

Two officers, Detective Constable Neil Borchardt and an Intelligence Analyst who worked on the case were both commended by the Crown Court Judge for their work on the investigation.

DC Borchardt said: “This was a significant criminal enterprise that was disrupted thanks to the suspicions of local people who were concerned about the constant activity at the property and the smell of chemicals emanating from the building.

“The gang used a criminally encrypted communication platform at a significant financial cost believing that they could use it to run their criminal activities safely, they were wrong.  Along with local residents, and working with the National Crime Agency, North Yorkshire Police Organised Crime Unit was able to disrupt and bring this criminal gang to justice.”

If you are suspicious of unusual activity in your neighbourhood, please call the police. You know what’s normal for your local area and what seems out of place. It may be nothing, or it may be the beginning of a major operation to disrupt criminals in your area. Please don’t think it’s a waste of time, it is not.

You can report information by calling 101, but if you do not want to talk to the police, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Always call 999 in an emergency, or if you are threatened or in danger.

North Yorkshire Police, News