Drug Offences

Stokoe Partnership Solicitors has been regarded as one of the leading firms in the UK for serious crime for many years, and is recognised by both of the UK’s leading legal directories, The Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners.

Our team are hugely experienced at representing clients charged with serious drug offences including importation, conspiracy to supply, manufacturing, cultivation and supplying drugs. Our specialist lawyers have dealt with some of the largest drug cases seen in the UK, including cases involving tens or even hundreds of millions of pounds worth of drugs. Our team are also highly experienced at dealing with money laundering and financial offences which often accompany serious drug charges, and are recognised as leading specialists by the legal directories for such financial crime.

We have a good relationship with leading members of the Bar, and ensure that cases are matched with barristers that have the necessary level of expertise and experience in dealing with the offence. We also work with a range of experts (including forensic, scientific, communication and technological experts) to ensure that the prosecution’s evidence is fully tested and that any defence is properly advanced.

We also understand the importance of ensuring that our clients and their immediate families are supported and with access to their solicitor at any time. We pride ourselves on being able to consistently offer the highest level of service whenever needed.

Notable cases

We represent the principal director of a company subject to an international investigation conducted by the National Crime Agency into an operation involving the production, distribution and sale of Class C drugs, namely various types of prohibited steroids. The investigation spanned 5 years and resulted in the seizure of hundreds of kilos of drugs. The case involved the distribution of drugs and associated money laundering through numerous foreign jurisdictions including India, Greece, and Balkan countries.

We represented a client charged with two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs along with eight others. It was alleged our client was at the top of the chain within the conspiracy. The operation was a joint partnership with officers of the National Crime Agency and the Metropolitan police which established the supply and importation of vast amounts of class A drugs, involving the UK and Spain. The Spanish connection involved an operation resulting in the seizure of 3 tonnes of cocaine, 1 million euros, encrypted blackberries and firearms. The Crown suggested that the overall turnover of class A drugs was in the region of 520kg a year and a total drug value of £104 million.

We represented a client alleged to have been involved in a multi kilo conspiracy to import Class A drugs into the UK from South America and South Africa. A successful half time submission of no case to answer was made to the Court that, as our client had failed to reach an agreement with his co-defendants, he had not conspired with others to commit the offence.

Represented two clients alleged to be drug barons who evaded capture for over a decade with an estimated business turnover of £1 billion. On their arrest law enforcement authorities had seized over £5million in cash which at the time was one of the largest cash seizures in the UK.

We represented a client who was charged with being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs. The client was convicted after trial and an appeal against the conviction was successful on the basis that the judge had erred in allowing the Crown to adduce bad character evidence of people not in the trial.

Our client was one of the UK’s most wanted men and had featured in a special programme on Sky TV, which had been made in conjunction with the National Crime Agency. He was wanted in connection with an international conspiracy to import 3 tonnes of cocaine into the Netherlands and Belgium from South America. These allegations stemmed from a Dutch investigation into a Turkish crime syndicate. We successfully challenged one of the charges he faced as the Crown had not obtained the necessary permission from the Attorney General to prosecute it. As a consequence, the Crown accepted a plea in relation to 2% of the original amount of cocaine and a significantly reduced the sentence.