Southampton pair jailed for five years for supporting cocaine and heroin supply in the city

A man and a woman have today been sentenced for their role in the large-scale supply of cocaine and heroin into Southampton.

Steven Forrest, 56, and 48-year-old Suezanne Forrest, both of Cromer Road in Southampton, appeared at Southampton Crown Court today (Thursday 28 November) where Steven and Suezanne were both sentenced to five years in prison.

The sentence comes after a police warrant discovered £250,000 worth of cocaine and heroin at a house on Old Redbridge Road in Southampton. Three double barrel sawn-off shotguns and three revolvers were also found inside the address.

The court was told how Steven and Suezanne supported Max Craig Alexander, 34 and of no fixed abode, who was the orchestrator and facilitator of the supply of Class A drugs from Liverpool into Southampton during 2020 and 2021.

The investigation into Alexander and his co-defendants was run by Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary’s Western Serious and Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) as Operation Boheme. This coincided with an international operation targeting criminals using a mobile encryption service, commonly referred to as EncroChat, to evade detection.

Steven and Suezanne had previously pleaded not guilty to conspiring to supply heroin and cocaine and conspiring to transfer criminal property. In May, a jury found them guilty of these offences following a lengthy trial, which began several weeks earlier in March at Southampton Crown Court.

Alexander was sentenced to 15 years in prison in October, while Stuart Marcus Forrest, 24, of Lyburn Close in Southampton, was sentenced to 14 years for his part in the supply chain.

Southampton Chief Inspector Chris Douglas said: “We are very pleased with the result of this investigation, which was incredibly complex and the result of years of hard work by the Western SOCU team.

“These four people, responsible for the supply of hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of Class A drugs into Southampton, have been sentenced to a combined total of 39 years in prison and will now face the consequences of what they have done.

“Offenders who traffic and peddle drugs do not care about the harm they bring to our communities and or the lives that are destroyed by addiction.

“The supply of drugs is often connected to other offences such as high levels of violence, or even the exploitation and abuse of vulnerable adults and children, which is why we relentlessly pursue those involved. These sentences demonstrate very clearly that we will not tolerate the supply of drugs in Hampshire & on the Isle of Wight. If you are involved in activity like this, we will find you and bring you to justice.

“We continue to encourage anyone who has information about drugs supply in their neighbourhood to report this to us, as this helps us build up an overall picture of the issues affecting your area.”

If you have concerns about drug-related activity in your neighbourhood please contact us on 101 or 999 in an emergency.

Alternatively, call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Spotting the signs

We encourage our communities to spot the signs that someone might be involved in drugs supply, and to report any suspicious activity to us via 101, the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary website or Crimestoppers where reports can be made 100% anonymously.

Some of the things to look out for and consider include:

• Do you know someone who is always going missing from school or their home?

• Are they travelling alone to places far away from home?

• Do they suddenly have lots of money/lots of new clothes/new mobile phones?

• Are they receiving much more calls or texts than usual?

• Are they carrying or selling drugs?

• Are they carrying weapons or know people that have access to weapons?

• Are they in a relationship with or hanging out with someone/people that are older and controlling?

• Do they have unexplained injuries?

• Do they seem very reserved or seem like they have something to hide?

• Do they seem scared?

• Are they self-harming?