Two men jailed after vulnerable Nuneaton woman had home taken over for drug dealing

Two men have been jailed after detectives uncovered they were exploiting a vulnerable woman by taking over her home in Nuneaton to deal drugs from.

At Warwick Crown Court last week, Ricardo Knole, 39, of Jodrell Court, Nuneaton, was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in jail.

Diego Gomes, 20, of Adelaide Street, Coventry, was sentenced to five years in jail.

Both men and another man from Hinckley (who the force is not naming for legal reasons) were found guilty of possession of crack cocaine, heroin and cannabis with intent to supply and possession of criminal property.

The man from Hinckley is currently awaiting trial for other offences and will be sentenced at a later date.

The court heard the gang cuckooed a vulnerable woman at the flat - a tactic often used by county lines gangs where they exploit vulnerable people to deal drugs from their property.

In this case the woman was forced out of the flat and made homeless.

Concerns raised by nearby residents led to officers from Nuneaton Proactive CID and the force’s tactical support team raiding the flat in May last year where they seized crack cocaine, heroin and cannabis, and arrested the three men.

DC Gemma Carroll said: “This was a typical county lines operation where heartless drug dealers exploit vulnerable people in order to sell drugs. The length of the sentences handed out reflects the distress they caused to the woman at the flat and the misery drug dealing causes in the wider community. This should serve as a warning to others.

“Information provided by the public was vital to this prosecution and ensuring a vulnerable woman was protected and found a new home. The public are our eyes and ears in the community and we act on all information provided.”

If you have information about drug production, dealing or use in your community you can report it online, call 101 or provide information anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.