A JURY in the trial of a Carlisle man accused of being involved in a “county lines” class A drugs supply plot has retired to begin its deliberations.
Peter Raymond Kenney, 48, faces one charge which he denies. This alleges he was involved in a conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine to others during May this year.
Kenney has gone on trial at Carlisle Crown Court, where a jury has heard that a 16-year-old schoolboy from London has already admitted that offence, and a further offence of possessing criminal property.
The teen was arrested in Carlisle on May 22 with more than £1,400 cash in his rucksack. It is said he admits travelling to Cumbria as part of an operation to supply the class A drugs as part of a “county lines” illegal enterprise which saw Carlisle addicts targeted by London gangsters using a phone “text bomb” to advertise illicit substances for sale.
However, Kenney – who had allowed the boy to stay at his Eldon Drive home in Carlisle after being asked by a friend – denies being involved in any criminal plot. “I had no idea,” Kenney said about learning of the teen’s illegal activity. “Not once did he mention drugs to me.”
After hearing closing speeches from the respective lawyers in the case, and a judge’s summing-up, the jury retired this afternoon (WED) to consider its verdict.
