Men operating a cannabis delivery service jailed

Posted on behalf of the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU).

Three men who ran a same-day cannabis delivery service across Bristol have been sentenced following an investigation by the SWROCU.

Jake Herault-Redman age 26 from North Road, St Andrews, Callum Coen age 22 from Broadbury Road, Filwood Park, and Joseph Wilks age 30 from Fountaine Court, Eastville, all appeared at Bristol Crown Court today (1 July).

The group promoted the sale of cannabis to customers on social media and an encrypted messaging app under their business name ‘The Smoke Shack’ and offered an in-person same-day delivery service to hundreds of addresses across Bristol as well as sending drugs across the country by post.

In June 2024, officers from SWROCU and Avon and Somerset Police executed a warrant at an address in Eastville, which was the hub of the drug supply operation.

Upon entry, Wilks ran at officers assaulting one of them before running out of the back door where he was detained. Coen and Herault-Redman were arrested a short distance from the address having also fled the premises.

Numerous weapons including machetes, air rifles, knives and baseball bats were recovered from around entrances to the address and a machete was found on the floor next to where the officer was assaulted. Following his arrest, Wilks said to officers “the only reason I didn’t machete you in the head is because I heard you shout police”.

At the time of the arrests, officers seized 7kg of cannabis, including edibles, and over £3,800 in cash. A further £13,000 of cryptocurrency was seized from Herault-Redman’s address along with over £3,330 worth of designer clothes.

A large number of black bin bags were at the property in Eastville and found to contain hundreds of brown sandwich bags each with a postcode and cash or crypto amounts written on them. The bags would be used to deliver drugs and payment dropped into the bag in exchange.

All three men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class B drugs and acquiring criminal property, namely cash and cryptocurrency. Herault-Redman was sentenced to three years and three months. Coen was handed an 18-month sentence, suspended for two years. Wilks pleaded guilty to an additional offence of assaulting a police officer and was jailed for a total of four-and-a-half years.

Acting Detective Inspector Stuart Cumine from SWROCU said: “We estimate the group was making in excess of a hundred thousand pounds every month over a significant period of time; they even had the audacity to have ‘The Smoke Shack’ branded clothing made to promote their illegal trade.

“The sheer number of discarded brown sandwich bags found demonstrates the scale of their cannabis delivery service to people across the length and breadth of Bristol.

“If you’re buying illegal drugs, you’re not only funding organised crime groups, you are ignoring the exploitation involved in their cultivation, production and supply.”

If you are aware of any form of criminal activity happening in your area, please contact your local police and report it. Alternatively, you can call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 111 555 or visit its website.