AN ANDOVER man is amongst a gang of armed drug-dealers jailed for a total of 17 years for being involved in a conspiracy to supply cannabis in Southampton.

Southampton Crown Court heard that a gun and a baseball bat were found during a police investigation into the gang's activities, which spanned a six-month period last year.

The gun, which was handled by at least two members of the group, was a starting pistol which had been modified to fire improvised bullets.

Shey Roberts, 24, of Juniper Close, Andover, was found guilty of conspiracy to supply a class B drug and was sentenced to 18 months.

Sylwester Adam Idziak, 32, of Winchester Road, Southampton, was found guilty of possessing a firearm in a public place and conspiracy to supply a class B drug. He was jailed for eight-and-a-half years.

Michal Hubert Lasak, 30, of King George's Avenue, Southampton, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply a class B drug. He was handed a 13-month term.

Simon Tekle, 23, of Newcombe Road, Southampton, pleaded guilty possessing a firearm in a public place and conspiracy to supply a class B drug. He was jailed for six years and four months.

The sentences follow an investigation carried about by Hampshire Constabulary’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit, which kept the gang under surveillance.

A police spokesman said: "Lasak was arrested after officers stopped a vehicle he was driving on the M3 on September 6. In the boot they found 1kg of cannabis.

"Lasak had been sent by Idziak to collect drugs from his contact in Andover, Shey Roberts, and was in the process of delivering the drugs to Idziak in Southampton when police pulled him over.

"Roberts was charged with conspiracy to supply drugs which had a street value of more than £10k."

The spokesman said armed response officers in Archers Road, Southampton, stopped a vehicle in which Idziak was travelling.

They searched the vehicle and found a bag containing a handgun and eight rounds of ammunition.

Idziak was arrested and Tekle was detained a short time later. Officers visited his home and found cannabis with a street value of more than £1,500.

Detective Inspector Andy Symes said: “These were organised criminals who were handling a large amount of drugs in the city.

"We are extremely pleased that the activities of this organised criminal group were disrupted.

"We targeted these individuals because of the high level of co-ordinated criminality they were engaged in. Not only were they a threat to one another and those they did business with, but they were a danger to people in our communities.

“This case shows our commitment to identifying and tackling organised crime groups intent on bringing a high level of harm to our city."