County lines duo sentenced in York

Two men have been jailed after officers swooped in on their temporary drugs base at a York hotel.

Lewis Benson, 20-years-old of Princess Street in Dewsbury and Jacob Dobson, 22-years-old of Windsor Road in Batley both pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply class-A drugs. At York Crown Court on Friday 12 April 2024 Dobson was sentenced to three years and 6 months in prison and Benson was sentenced to a 20-month custodial sentence, suspended for 18.

On Thursday 05 October 2023 police officers from the York Expedite Team worked with officers from West Yorkshire Police to uncover the travelling duo and their intentions to deal drugs.

A York hotel room was booked in Dobson’s name and CCTV footage captures him and Benson arriving together that morning. When officers entered the room, they found Benson inside and uncovered a large quantity of class A- drugs, two mobile phones and a lock knife.

Dobson later returned to the room and was found to be in possession of a quantity of cash. The drugs, cash, phones and weapon were seized by officers and the men were arrested. The phones continued to ring throughout the day indicating that the men were involved in county lines activity.          

PC Damion Liversidge from the York Expedite Team commented: “We’re committed to dismantling county lines networks through the targeting of offenders and the safeguarding of victims.

“This case demonstrates that we will work tirelessly to prosecute criminals for drug dealing. It also shows that there are no borders, we will continue to work with other police forces to share intelligence and act on information.

“I would urge local communities to continue to work with us by informing us of any suspicious activity. The information you provide may help us secure out next conviction”.

(Lewis Benson) 

(Jacob Dobson) 

Support Services

If you are a young person who is worried about being involved in county lines, or knows someone who is, you can speak to an adult and let them know how you feel.

You can also contact www.fearless.org   who allow you to pass on information about crime anonymously.

You can also contact Childline on 0800 1111 – they are a private and confidential service where you can talk to counsellors about anything that is worrying you.

Get help for drug addiction

North Yorkshire Rise – young people's specialist drug and alcohol service- freephone 08000 14 14 80 (option 2).

North Yorkshire Horizons - adult specialist drug and alcohol service - freephone 08000 14 14 80 – nyhorizons.org.uk

York Drug and Alcohol Service – specialist support for adults and young people - 01904 464 680 - https://www.changing-lives.org.uk/find-support/york-drug-and-alcohol-services

For details on the range of sources of support in York, including York in Recovery, please see: https://www.livewellyork.co.uk/information-and-advice/health-and-wellbeing/help-for-drugs-and-alcohol-use/

DRUGFAM – Support for people affected by other people’s drug or alcohol misuse – 0300 888 3853 https://drugfam.co.uk/