Five jailed in £5.5m cigs plot

Sep 5 2007

FIVE Black Country men have been put behind bars for a total of 11 years for their part in an operation to flood the area with more than £5.5 million worth of smuggled cigarettes.

"This conspiracy represents serious organised crime," Judge Michael Challinor told the smugglers at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

He said the £833,913 the gang evaded in excise duty demonstrated it was an operation capable of turning over a great deal of money.

Malcolm Morse, prosecuting, told the court loads of cigarettes destined for foreign markets ended up at industrial units in the Black Country.

The operation was being run by 47-year-old Sandor Nyari, of Brereton Road, Willenhall - a man described by the judge as a "determined criminal from whom the public should be protected."

He ran the operation with 31-year-old Dean Jackson, of Pritchard Avenue, Willenhall.

Nyari, Dean Jackson, Stuart Griffiths, 25, of Ravenscroft Road, Stefan Davis,19, of Pinson Road, Jason Jackson, 28, of Wolverson Close, all Willenhall, admitted with 32- year-old Shaun Williams - whose address was not given to the court - conspiracy to evade excise duty.

The judge jailed Nyari for four years, Dean Jackson for 30 months and Griffiths, Jason Jackson and Williams for 18 months each.

Davis, a talented footballer who had a trial with Wolves, was given a 12-month suspended prison sentence and ordered to carry out 200 hours community punishment and to pay £250 costs.

Csaba Berecz, 41, of Hungary, was jailed for seven months at the Crown Court 24 hours earlier for his role as a lorry driver in the plot. ..SUPL: