Fort Royal Park drug dealers had £1,700 of crack and heroin

One dealer even hurriedly tried to dismantle his burner phone - used to advertise drugs for sale - when he was stopped in Fort Royal Park in Worcester but it was too late.

Now both dealers have received jail sentences more than three years after they were caught by plain-clothes city detectives who had them under close watch.

However, due to time spent on remand, the dealer who received an immediate custodial sentence is already free.

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Fort Royal Park was once one of the key sites in the Battle of Worcester but became the frontline of another conflict - West Mercia Police's ongoing war against County Lines drug dealing in 2019.

SEIZED: Drugs seized by detectives from South Worcestershire Proactive CID (Image: West Mercia Police)

Worcester police stopped two drug dealers who both received jail sentences (one suspended and one immediate) at Worcester Crown Court as the South Worcestershire proactive CID team continue their work to put out-of-town dealers who come to the city behind bars and out of business.

O’neil Pendley, 29, of Capstone Avenue, Birmingham, was charged with possession with intent to supply class A drugs (heroin and crack cocaine).

However, he pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of those drugs.

Reille Forbes-Brown, 21, of Uxbridge Street, Newtown, Birmingham, was charged with possession with intent to supply class A drugs (heroin and crack cocaine) and pleaded guilty at the first hearing.

On Friday, October 18, 2019, Pendley was stopped for the purpose of a search in Fort Royal Park, Worcester by plain clothes detectives from the South Worcestershire Proactive CID County Lines Team following an interaction with a known drug user.

A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: "He was found with cash in his hand and a burner-style phone that he was trying to dismantle. Pendley was arrested and a vehicle linked to him was located close by.

"Inside the vehicle was his co-defendant Forbes-Brown. Forbes-Brown was found in possession of 62 wraps of heroin and 111 wraps of crack cocaine (street value £1,730) and was arrested.

"Pendley had two previous class A drug supply convictions and committed this offence while on licence. On Friday (December 9) he was jailed for two years and 10 months."

Forbes-Brown was sentenced on November 9 to one year and nine months on each count concurrent, suspended for two years.

He was also ordered to complete 190 hours of unpaid work and pay costs of £535 and a victim surcharge.

Officer in Case Detective Jason Atkins, with over 14 years service, said: "The South Worcestershire County Lines Team will continue to target those criminals that attempt to supply drugs into the area. Our focus is to target the most serious criminals and to protect the most vulnerable in the communities we serve."