TWO members of a drugs gang who flooded the streets of South Wales with class A drugs have been jailed for a total of 15 years. 

Corey Barnett, 27, was shipping in heroin while Jordan Lewis, 29, both from Newport, was involved in trafficking cocaine.

Matthew Cobbe, prosecuting, said Barnett was working with two separate gangs.

The first was an organised crime group based in the Corporation Road and Cromwell Road areas of Newport.

That gang was brought to justice following a police investigation codenamed Operation Braddock.

Barnett’s fellow defendants were jailed for more than 30 years in May 2021.

The second group involved him and Lewis, of Conway Road, Newport.

MORE NEWS: ‘Bully of worst kind’ strangled his mother and stole her money 

That police investigation was called Operation Jericho and both defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A drugs.

EncroChat mobile phones were used by them to send encrypted messages but their business, like hundreds of others, were brought crashing down when the system was cracked in July 2020.

Multi kilogram amounts of class A drugs were brought into Newport and Cardiff by them.

Mr Cobbe said: “Corey Barnett was sourcing drugs from the Midlands.”

Barnett and Lewis played “middle tier roles” within the gang, Newport Crown Court was told.

Ben Waters, representing Barnett, said the defendant was a family man who had been in custody since July 2020 and asked for his guilty pleas to be taken into account.

Jonathan Elystan Rees KC, for father-of-two Lewis, said his client had no relevant previous convictions “and shown remorse for those whose lives are blighted by drug use”.

Judge Richard Williams told Barnett and Lewis: “You were members of a conspiracy to supply class A drugs across South Wales.

“The conspiracy operated between the end of March and the beginning of June 2020.

“During that time 3.5kg of cocaine and 1kg of heroin, with a wholesale value of £135,000 and potential street value of up to £800,000, was sold to users by means of a so-called drugs line.”

Barnett was jailed for nine years and Lewis locked up for six years.

Two other gang members, brothers KC Kelly, 22, and Kyle Kelly, 18, both of Glyn Collen, Pentwyn, Cardiff, played “junior roles” and were sentenced earlier this month.

When the police raided the Kelly brothers’ home, they found £31,000 in cash hidden down a drain stashed inside a toilet bag.

Matthew Buckland, representing KC Kelly, said he was an assistant manager with a fast food business

Leonard Smith, KC, mitigating for Kyle Kelly, told the court: “He’s a good lad from a good family.

“He was exploited by experienced drug dealers when he was just 16.”

KC Kelly was jailed for two years but that sentence was suspended for 12 months.

He was ordered to carry out 240 hours of unpaid work.

Kyle Kelly was sent to a young offender institution for 12 months but that sentence was suspended for six months.