Members of an organised criminal gang have been jailed for a combined 100 years after using storage containers on an industrial estate to stash guns, drugs and cash.
An investigation by detectives found the group were storing firearms and selling heroin, crack cocaine, cocaine, MDMA and cannabis to street dealers, predominantly in the Mansfield area but also as far away as Hertfordshire and parts of Wales.
When they conducted warrants and opened up the containers, officers found five viable firearms and a huge quantity of ammunition.
Three of these weapons were handguns and included a Broomhandle Mauser.
The gang’s ringleader, Jamie Smith, was handed a jail sentence of 22 years and eight months after the judge condemned his possession of these ‘lethal weapons’, which were ‘highly susceptible to falling into the wrong hands’.
Members of the gang were given access to different storage containers at the Mansfield site depending on their position in the group.
Detectives dismantled the gang’s activity and unravelled their conspiracy following a lengthy investigation which began in August 2025.
Gang members were making multiple trips to the storage containers, where they were observed delivering and collecting packages, boxes and cash.
One of the key players, Leah Hopkinson, was seen attending the site, sometimes up to four times a day during a three-month period.
It is believed Hopkinson was supplying up to 600 wraps a day of Class A and B drugs to street dealers.
Other members of the gang included Justin Gibson and Kieran Rimmer, who moved items from container to container.
Smith was also seen moving large amounts of cash. In November 2025, moments before a warrant was executed by police, Smith was observed moving firearms between two storage containers.
During the warrant on all five containers, officers seized a large quantity of cash and drugs, the five firearms, ammunition, knives, including a machete, and drug-dealing equipment, including a drug press, scales, mixing agents and packaging consistent with wholesale amounts.
The defendants’ properties were also searched. At the home address of Smith and his partner, Shannon Lee Shaw, in Breckbank, Mansfield, evidence was located, including a drugs line phone.
Overall, officers seized a large quantity of cash, mobile phones and SIM cards, firearms, a machete and a hoard of designer clothing, along with thousands of pounds’ worth of motorbikes.
They also located a mobile phone, wrapped in clingfilm and hidden behind a fence, which exposed the drugs line in Smith’s messages.
In total, £48,038 in cash was recovered from the five containers and the addresses, along with an estimated £746,000 worth of drugs on enforcement day alone.
Detective Inspector James McDonagh, of Nottinghamshire Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Task Force, said:
“Many hours of detective work allowed us to dismantle this sophisticated criminal operation.
“Certain members of this gang were making large amounts of money and living lavish lifestyles funded by the misery of the drug users they exploited.
“They used five storage containers, with different levels of access, depending on the person’s role within the hierarchy of the gang.
“For example, one of the containers was used to store money, another was used for storing drugs and firearms, and the others were used to package the drugs and deal from.
“Jamie Smith was clearly prepared to enforce his business using the firearms found within one of the containers.
“Offences involving firearms are extremely rare in Nottinghamshire and we are proactive in our efforts to take them off the streets and keep the public safe from the devastating consequences of gun crime.
“Ultimately, whole communities will benefit from these criminals being put behind bars for a considerable period of time.
“I’d also like to thank all the officers and police staff who worked tirelessly on this lengthy, complex and challenging investigation.
“The efforts of the Serious and Organised Crime Task Force and other teams we worked alongside have helped secure this outcome.”
Passing sentence on 12 members of the gang on Thursday (24 September) at Nottingham Crown Court, Judge John Sampson said:
“Class A drugs blight the lives of individuals, wreck families, cause further crime and destroy communities.
“You were all involved in peddling this misery.”
The sentences handed down were:
Jamie Smith, aged 37, of Breckbank, Mansfield, was jailed for a total of 22 years and eight months after he pleaded guilty to three counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, conspiracy to supply Class B drugs, possession of a shotgun without a certificate, possession of a firearm without a firearm certificate, possession of a prohibited firearm and possession of ammunition without a firearm certificate.
Justin Gibson, aged 36, of The Rushes, Mansfield Woodhouse, was jailed for 17 years after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class B drugs and was found guilty after trial of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Leah Hopkinson, aged 31, of The Rushes, Mansfield Woodhouse, was sentenced to six years in jail after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply Class B drugs and being found guilty after trial of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Kieran Rimmer, aged 37, of Seventh Avenue, Clipstone, was sentenced to 11 years and three months in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Matthew Bryan, aged 35, of Elm Tree Avenue, Mansfield, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in jail.
Stefan Houston, aged 39, of Third Avenue, Clipstone, was found guilty after trial of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was jailed for six years.
Brennan Hayes, aged 22, of Portland Crescent, Mansfield Woodhouse, was sentenced to five years and four months after he pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Anthony Lumley, aged 50, of Manor Road, Mansfield Woodhouse, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was jailed for eight years and one month.
Josh Harmieson, aged 33, of Elm Tree Avenue, Mansfield, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and conspiracy to supply Class B drugs and was jailed for five years and three months.
Jack Smith, aged 25, of Charles Street, Mansfield Woodhouse, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs and possession with intent to supply Class B drugs. He was sentenced to five years and 10 months in jail.
Lee Shipman, aged 40, of Byron Street, Shirebrook, Derbyshire, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was jailed for five years and seven months.
Shannon Shaw, aged 31, of Breckbank, Mansfield, was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, after admitting acquiring criminal property.
