Skegness Drug Dealer Jailed After Seven-Month Manhunt

A Skegness man, who managed to avoid arrest for seven months after confessing to his involvement in a drug trafficking ring, has been given a prison sentence. Connor Stewart, a 23-year-old resident of Lincoln Road, Skegness, was given a sentence of six years and seven months at Lincoln Crown Court. This was in response to his failure to attend his original sentencing in February. Stewart was eventually detained in Bulwell, Nottingham, on 3 September.

It was revealed in court that Stewart had taken over a drug operation in Skegness, known as the “Scouse line” network. This operation was previously headed by Joel Tasker of Grimsby, who had previously been sentenced to 12 years imprisonment earlier this year. Stewart’s role involved the management and distribution of heroin and crack cocaine. He had also enlisted the help of others, often resorting to methods of intimidation. Judge Simon Hirst emphasised Stewart’s crucial role in the conspiracy during the court proceedings. Despite his unlawful activities, it was mentioned in court as a mitigating factor that Stewart had managed to save a woman’s life whilst he was evading the authorities. Detective Sergeant Adam Petty from Lincolnshire Police commented on the importance of dismantling this “dangerous conspiracy” in order to prevent the menace of drugs and related violence from seeping into local communities.

This story is an adaptation of original reporting by www.bbc.com, adjusted for re-publication by The Lincoln Post.