Couple put behind bars over drug charges just weeks after fairytale proposal

This moment was supposed to be the start of a perfect new life for the couple – but little did they know, the police were closing in on them after both were linked to a £26 million drugs racket.

The heavily pregnant 26-year-old, Saskia Steward, accepted the proposal from her fiancé, Jack Donegan, in October last year.

But the couple, who were joint directors of a recruitment company, were unaware that detectives were preparing to raid their £450,000 home on a suburban cul-de-sac in Warrington, Cheshire.

Police linked the couple to two men arrested in separate drug busts.

Inquiries revealed Donegan had bragged about making £15,000 a month from trafficking ketamine and cocaine across Britain.

In a text message to Steward, he referred to one happy customer saying: ‘Yeah love he’s sound as f***. This is going to be great for us! I mean that x.’

Another text read: ‘It’s lovely to be fair. Just going through all of this with him then hopefully chilling soon hahah looking average per month 15k.’

In January this year, both Steward and Donegan were arrested after detectives raided 12 properties across Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside and North Wales.

Steward had recently given birth to their daughter when she was arrested.

These raids were part of an investigation codenamed Operation Acropolis.

The gang’s reach extended throughout the North West of England and beyond where they supplied customers as far as Derby, London and Great Yarmouth.

After Donegan admitted to conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs at Preston Crown Court on Friday, he was jailed for 15 years.

For participating in the activities of an organised crime group, Steward was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, suspended for two years.

In connection with the conspiracy, seven other men were jailed for a total of 54 years.

Police described Donegan’s drug trafficking operation as ‘vast’, with a spreadsheet ledger recovered from his phone showing he had supplied more than 800kg of Class A drugs, with profits exceeding £26 million.

He had a network of couriers who transported the drugs across the UK and a minder who would store and allocate drugs on the boss’ instruction.

When Stephen Joel-Craven, 42, the gang’s ‘money man’ was arrested with £5,000 in cash in his car, Donegan’s empire began to crumble.

A search of Joel-Craven’s home uncovered another £300,000, alongside a counting machine.

Joel-Craven from Skelmersdale, Merseyside, was jailed for eight years and eight months for participating in activities of an organised crime group and possession of criminal property.

On May 30 last year, a man who worked as a courier for the gang was detained at Knutsford Services, on the M6, in Cheshire, with 12kg of cocaine hidden in a blue box.

This is what led detectives to Donegan and brought down his operation.

DCI Kelly Wild, from the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit Operations team, said: ‘This was a meticulous and far-reaching investigation that has dismantled one of the most significant organised crime groups operating in the North West and beyond.

‘The scale of this conspiracy was staggering – hundreds of kilograms of Class A drugs were moved across the country, generating tens of millions of pounds in criminal profit, while causing misery in the communities where these drugs were sold.

‘The sentences handed down reflect the seriousness of these crimes and send a clear message – organised crime groups who profit from the misery of others will be relentlessly pursued, dismantled, and brought before the courts.

‘Our teams worked tirelessly to uncover the full extent of this network, from the couriers on the road to the money men counting cash, and the leaders orchestrating supply.’

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