ESSEX — A criminal gang using a dog-breeding clinic as a front for a large-scale drug operation has been dismantled after a two-and-a-half-year investigation. The gang members, including Daniel French, 39, and Paul Austin, 47, were sentenced at Basildon Crown Court on April 8.
The investigation began in 2020 when EncroChat mobile devices, popular with organized crime groups, were decrypted in Europe. Essex Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit launched a probe, culminating in 11 warrants executed at properties across south and west Essex and Kent in October 2022.
During the raids, officers discovered a significant quantity of Class A drugs, including cocaine. French, of London Road, Kent, and Austin, of Burnt Mills Road, Basildon, were identified as the masterminds of the operation, overseeing the supply of both cocaine and cannabis, as well as engaging in money laundering.
Encrypted chats between March and May 2020 revealed the pair acted as middle-market dealers, sourcing cocaine in bulk and distributing it to lower-level dealers. Police proved French and Austin controlled the drug supply chain, deciding who to buy from and sell to while organizing payments to those working for them.