Drug dealer who assaulted police officer is jailed
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A drug dealer who kicked and headbutted a police officer on a street in Burton-on-Trent has been jailed.
Joshua Page, 19, from Burton-on-Trent, was sentenced to four years and nine months in a young offender institute at the North Staffordshire Justice Centre on Thursday April 11.
The teenager had pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply heroin, two counts of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine, possessing a weapon in a public place, assaulting an emergency worker and failing to provide a sample for analysis at an earlier hearing.
On Thursday 23 November last year, Page ran into a Sports Direct store after officers drove by him and a group of men at a bus stop on Worthington Way in Burton.
The officers followed Page into the shop, where he dropped a baton onto the floor and ran off. Shortly after, he was arrested in the town after trying to discard a bag containing wraps of crack cocaine.
When Page was searched, we recovered phones, scales, empty snap-bags, two cannabis grinders and £54 cash. In custody a further £150 was found by officers. He was released under investigation.
Then, on Tuesday 16 January this year, detectives tried to stop Page in Stapenhill, Burton, after witnessing a drug deal. He resisted and kicked and headbutted an officer before he was eventually detained. Thankfully, the officer only suffered minor injuries.
When officers searched Page they found 62 deals of heroin, 41 deals of crack cocaine and cash.
Detective Sergeant Jonathan Bradbury, from major organised crime, said: “Like so many dealers, Page was running a drugs operation with no regard for the devastating impact such criminality has on others. This is why our proactive teams continue to work hard to target dealers and take them off our streets.
“This result also drives home our message that all assaults on our police officers and police staff are totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Thankfully, the officer’s injuries were not more serious.”
The activity follows our ongoing commitment to tackling serious and organised crime and protecting those who are at risk of exploitation by criminals.
Through Operation Target, we continue to proactively target the groups responsible for these crimes, including county lines, drug distribution, illegal firearms and sexual exploitation.
To read more, visit: Major operation to target serious organised crime launched | Staffordshire Police