Wrexham cocaine dealer faces prison over unpaid £920 order 2026

Key Points

• Samantha Harrill from Heol y Plas, Cefn Mawr, Wrexham, was found to have gained around £31,503.79 from a cocaine conspiracy.
• During a Proceeds of Crime hearing at Mold Crown Court, prosecutor Ryan Rothwell mentioned that the sum which can be confiscated was £920.
• This amount is related to a Volkswagen Golf owned by Harrill.
• His Honour Judge Nicola Jones ordered Samantha Harrill to pay the sum of £920 within three months, otherwise, she would be jailed for seven days.
• Samantha Harrill, aged 40, appeared remotely for the hearing.
• Three-year community order was given to Harrill in March 2026, as she admitted to conspiring to supply cocaine.
• This community order has 20 days of rehabilitation activities along with six months of trail monitoring.
• Harrill participated in Operation Lardy, a North Wales Police operation regarding drug supply in Wrexham and Flintshire.
• It should be mentioned that this operation was conducted with assistance from the National Crime Agency and the Regional Organised Crime Unit.
• A total of 17 people were jailed for 128 years during the cases between November 2024 and March 2026.
• Cocaine worth over £150,000 and cannabis worth more than £20,000 was seized by police during the investigation.
• The alleged conspiracy took place regarding the supply of Class A and Class B drugs between April 2022 and September 2023.

Wrexham (Wales Times) November 7, 2026 — A uk/local/wrexham/">Wrexham woman convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine has been ordered to repay £920 after a court found she benefited by more than £31,000 from drug dealing, with a Volkswagen Golf identified as the only asset currently available for confiscation.

As reported by North Wales Live, Samantha Harrill, 40, of Heol y Plas, Cefn Mawr, appeared by video link at Mold Crown Court for a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing. Prosecutor Ryan Rothwell told the court that Harrill had benefited by £31,503.79 from her criminal conduct, but that only £920 was available for her to repay.

What Did the Court Decide?

Judge Her Honour Nicola Jones agreed with the figures presented to the court and gave Harrill three months to pay the £920. The judge warned that if she failed to pay, she could face imprisonment.

As reported by North Wales Live, Judge Jones said:

“If you don’t pay the danger is that you could end up in prison for seven days.”

The £920 available for confiscation was described in court as being in the form of a Volkswagen Golf in Harrill’s possession. The vehicle therefore represents the recoverable asset identified at the hearing, despite the substantially higher figure assessed as her criminal benefit.

Why Is the Repayment Lower Than Her Benefit?

The difference between the benefit figure and the amount Harrill has been ordered to pay reflects the Proceeds of Crime Act process. Under that framework, courts can assess the benefit a person obtained from criminal conduct, while the confiscation order is limited to the amount that can realistically be recovered from available assets.

In Harrill’s case, prosecutor Ryan Rothwell told Mold Crown Court that her benefit from the offence was £31,503.79. He said the sum available for repayment was £920, held in the form of the Volkswagen Golf.

The court did not order Harrill to repay the full £31,503.79 at this stage because that amount was not said to be available in recoverable assets. Instead, Judge Jones approved the £920 figure and set a three-month deadline for payment.

What Was Harrill Originally Sentenced For?

Harrill was convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine. In March 2026, she received a three-year community order, 20 days of rehabilitation activity and a requirement to wear a trail monitoring tag for six months.

As reported by the Leader, Harrill had previously admitted one offence of conspiring to supply cocaine between April 1, 2022, and September 18, 2023. The prosecution said she acted as a dealer, driver and facilitator for the gang.

At the sentencing hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court, Judge Petts described the decision as an “exceptional course”. As reported by the Leader, the judge said that Harrill’s position as the mother of a young child, together with the passage of time since the offending period, allowed him to impose a community order rather than immediate custody.

The judge also warned Harrill that any further offending during the three-year order would bring her back before the court. He said the community order was “backed up with a very big stick”.

How Does This Relate to Operation Lardy?

Harrill’s case forms part of the wider aftermath of Operation Lardy, a major North Wales Police investigation into drug supply in Wrexham and Flintshire. The operation targeted a suspected conspiracy involving Class A and Class B drugs.

According to North Wales Police, the investigation was conducted over six months and involved assistance from the National Crime Agency and the Regional Organised Crime Unit. Officers carried out coordinated warrants across more than 20 properties in Wrexham and Flintshire during a three-day period.

The operation led to 20 arrests, including three arrests at Manchester Airport. Officers seized significant quantities of drugs, cash, weapons and mobile phones.

The seizures included cocaine estimated to be worth more than £150,000 and cannabis with a street value exceeding £20,000. The charges subsequently brought against defendants related to a conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs between April 2022 and September 2023.

How Many People Were Jailed?

Seventeen defendants were imprisoned for a combined total of 128 years in sentencing hearings held at Mold Crown Court and Caernarfon Crown Court between November 2024 and March 2026.

As reported by Nation.Cymru, the defendants were sentenced for their roles in a major conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs. The report said several other people received suspended sentences or community orders for assisting the group by laundering money through bank accounts or handling criminal property.

North Wales Police said the operation dismantled a major drug ring and resulted in sentences totalling more than 100 years. The force identified Harrill as having received a three-year community order for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

What Happens if Harrill Does Not Pay?

Harrill now has three months to pay the £920 confiscation order. If she does not pay within that period, Judge Nicola Jones said she could be sent to prison for seven days.

The warning makes clear that the confiscation order carries an enforcement consequence. However, the court’s stated potential penalty was seven days’ imprisonment, rather than a longer custodial sentence.

Harrill appeared by video link during the Proceeds of Crime Act hearing. The hearing concerned the recovery of assets linked to her criminal benefit, rather than a fresh sentencing exercise for the underlying drugs conspiracy.

What Does the Case Show About Asset Recovery?

The case illustrates how a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing can produce two separate figures: the benefit obtained from crime and the amount available for confiscation. In Harrill’s case, the court accepted that her benefit was £31,503.79, while identifying only £920 as recoverable.

The available sum was linked specifically to the Volkswagen Golf in her possession. The court’s decision means that Harrill must either pay £920 within three months or face the imprisonment warning issued by Judge Jones.

The hearing does not alter Harrill’s earlier community-order sentence. It adds a financial recovery requirement arising from the same criminal conduct.

Background of the Development

Operation Lardy began as an extensive covert investigation into a suspected Class A and Class B drugs conspiracy in North Wales. North Wales Police led the operation, with support from the National Crime Agency and the Regional Organised Crime Unit.

Arrests were made in September 2023 after a large-scale operation targeting drug supply in Wrexham and Flintshire. Coordinated warrants were executed across more than 20 properties during a three-day period, resulting in 20 arrests, including three at Manchester Airport.

Officers seized drugs, cash, weapons and mobile phones. The seized cocaine was estimated to be worth more than £150,000, while cannabis seized during the operation had an estimated street value of more than £20,000.

The charges related to a conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs between April 2022 and September 2023. Sentencing hearings took place at Mold Crown Court and Caernarfon Crown Court between November 2024 and March 2026.

Harrill admitted conspiring to supply cocaine during that period. The prosecution said she acted as a dealer, driver and facilitator for the gang.

At her sentencing in March 2026, Judge Petts imposed a three-year community order, 20 days of rehabilitation activity and six months of trail monitoring. The judge said the decision was exceptional and reflected Harrill’s circumstances as the mother of a young child.

The latest Proceeds of Crime Act hearing at Mold Crown Court addressed the financial consequences of her offending. It confirmed a criminal benefit of £31,503.79, an available amount of £920 and a three-month deadline for payment.

Prediction: How This May Affect Local Residents

For residents of Wrexham and Flintshire, the case may reinforce the visible follow-through of Operation Lardy beyond initial arrests and sentencing. The Proceeds of Crime Act hearing shows that authorities are continuing to pursue financial recovery from people connected to the drugs conspiracy.

For families and community members affected by drug supply, the case may provide reassurance that enforcement action does not end with custodial sentences. The wider operation resulted in 128 years of imprisonment across 17 defendants, alongside seizures of drugs, cash, weapons and mobile phones.

For people directly involved in or connected to drug supply, the development may highlight the risk of both criminal prosecution and asset recovery. Harrill’s case demonstrates that a court may assess a substantially higher criminal benefit than the amount immediately recoverable, while still requiring payment of available assets within a set period.

For local taxpayers and public-service users, the case forms part of a broader enforcement effort involving North Wales Police, the National Crime Agency and the Regional Organised Crime Unit. The outcome may be viewed as part of ongoing efforts to disrupt organised drug supply in the Wrexham and Flintshire areas.