THREE van drivers hired as sub-contractors to deliver medicines to British pharmacies have avoided jail time after being convicted of pilfering pain medications to sell on the black market.
The men, Richard Gaskell, Tristan Keddie and David Tilley became involved in a scheme to steal drugs to be sold on illegally, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday.
Prosecutors told the court that an unnamed individual would make orders for painkillers including codeine and tramadol, on behalf of pharmacies, which the three men would subsequently divert to drug dealers.
The prosecution noted that at the time the scheme was launched, wholesalers were dealing with a significant increase in order volumes as pharmacists across the UK sought to secure supplies of vital medicines, making it harder for call centre staff to identify the scam.
However, Gaskell, Keddie and Tilley were spotted on CCTV delivering orders to pharmacists in the Liverpool area, and stealing the bogus orders, the Liverpool Echo reported.
The trio were subsequently arrested and pleaded guilty, but did not reveal who else was involved in the plot.
Sentencing the three men yesterday, Judge David Swinnerton, said the scheme was an example of criminals taking advantage of the pandemic.
"Somebody somewhere realised that there was money to be made from some of those boxes if they disappeared off the back of your vans and into the black market," he said.
Swinnerton told the Court that given the men did not have recent criminal convictions he would not issue custodial sentences.
Keddie was identified as being "one rung higher up" than Gaskell and Tilley, and was given a nine-month sentence suspended for 18 months, with orders to complete 15 days rehabilitation and 200 hours of unpaid work.
Gaskell was handed a six-month sentence suspended for a year, on the grounds that he complete 25 days rehabilitation, while Tilley was sentenced to a 12-month community order and 20 days rehabilitation.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 18 May 22
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 18 May 22
