A RUNCORN man involved in a plot to flood Carlisle’s streets with heroin was caught making criminal road trips by a tracker fitted to his car for insurance purposes.

Jamie Rigby, now aged 24, was one of eight people brought to court for their roles in a county lines conspiracy which saw the class A drug trafficked into north Cumbria over the course of 15 months.

This illegal enterprise ran through tough Covid lockdowns, between March of 2020 and May the following year.

It continued despite key players being arrested and bailed with conditions which banned them entering the county until detectives rounded up suspects.

Three high-ranking members of an organised crime gang from the Merseyside area made scores of illegal visits to deliver heroin into Carlisle.

With the help of city street dealers, they established a customer base of addicts and sent out more than 4,800 text 'flare' messages, through burner phone lines, advertising heroin for sale.

As they also set up camps from which to deal the drug, four out-of-county crooks — including Rigby — moved into city residents’ addresses, a practice known as 'cuckooing'.

Seizures of both heroin and bulking agents, along with other evidence, pointed to more than 3.6kg of heroin being trafficked.

“Discounting occasions when two or more of these (conspirators) travelled together, there were at least 85 conspiracy-related journeys into Cumbria,” said prosecutor Brendan Burke.

“These were detected by (phone) cell-siting, automatic number plate recognition (cameras) and unfortunately, in Rigby’s case, his insurer’s vehicle tracker."

Unlike three main Merseyside men who directed the operation, Rigby took on a more limited role.

He collected heroin from the Garston area of Merseyside and drove north to arrange distribution.

He stayed overnight in Carlisle at a time when 18 separate text bombs were sent to scores of would-be customers, and would collect cash from illegal sales.

“He made 16 trips from Runcorn to Carlisle in his own vehicle, tracked by a device installed by arrangement with his insurers,” said Mr Burke.

He explained: “This enabled police to locate his movements even more accurately than by using cell-siting.”

Rigby, of The Winnows, Runcorn, was involved for 41 days in total after a main player’s arrest.

He was detained by police in late September, 2020, had 27.3g of heroin in his car and later admitted conspiracy to supply the drug.

The court heard Rigby was aged just 20 at the time. He had been addicted to cocaine, said his lawyer, was naive and played a role in the conspiracy against a background of coercion and threats from those higher up the criminal ladder.

Rigby was given a four-year prison sentence by Judge Michael Fanning, who last week jailed 43-year-old Carlisle man Kieron Lowe, of Baird Road, for 31 months.

Another north Cumbria man has previously been given a suspended sentence, while four other men and one woman are awaiting punishment for their involvement in the plot.