FOUR petty criminals formed a DIY drugs gang to muscle in on Hereford’s heroin trade – and blew any money they made on their own addiction.

Hereford Crown Court heard how the gang was left with little to show for its “hand-to-mouth” efforts, despite the number of addicts who came to rely on them.

Busted by a police operation code-named Nugget, the gang had nothing more than the heroin stock they had in store, and most of that went out of the window when undercover officers burst into their fortified “warehouse”.

Ashley Harmon, aged 27, of Lime Grove, Hinton, Hereford; Mark Sayce, aged 34, of Archenfield, Madley; Timothy Kaye, aged 26, of Archenfield, Madley; and Paul Kings, aged 35, of Springfield Avenue, Hunderton, Hereford; all admitted a series of charges related to supplying heroin and were each jailed for four years.

His Honour Judge Richard Rundell told the four that evidence showed they had set up a “significant operation” to meet a ready market.

Anthony Johnston, prosecuting, told the court that the gang used Kings’ flat in Hunderton to sell from and kept its stocks at Sayce’s home in Madley.

A police surveillance team spent several weeks watching the flat between July and September last year to see a steady stream of addicts calling and deals being done. Another team was watching Sayce’s address at Madley.

Sayce and Kaye were caught with more than £1,000 worth of the the drug that they had been seen buying in Gloucester when undercover officers stopped and searched their car.

Raids on the two target addresses were launched last September. At Archenfield, officers had to force their way through a front door that had been barricaded by a metal pole and saw Harmon hurl heroin, just bought in Newport, out of a window.

The Springfield Road flat was found full of evidence that deals were being done, but no heroin.

The four gave little away in police interviews and were freed on bail. Kings was arrested again in October when heroin was found in his shed and told officers that he had let Sayce and Harmon use his flat to sell the drug. All four then faced conspiracy charges.

The court heard that the defendants were heroin addicts with previous convictions that ranged from drugs offences and dishonesty to counterfeiting.

Anna Midgley, for Harmon and Kaye, said the “hand-to-mouth” dealing being done was solely to feed the gang’s own addiction.

Sarah Przybylska, for Sayce, said the gang made no profit from the operation beyond that to fund modest lifestyles.

Michael Aspinall, for Kings, said his client let his flat be used for drug dealing in return for heroin.