Earby drugs factory: On-the-run builder given extra jail time

A builder who was sentenced in his absence for helping to set up an amphetamine factory has been given extra jail time for going on the run.

Darren Henderson, 52, of Monkswood Bank, Leeds, was sentenced to seven years at Preston Crown Court for conspiracy to supply a controlled drug.

However, he failed to appear for the trial and a nationwide manhunt began.

Police said he later handed himself in and was sentenced to an extra 28 weeks in prison at the same court.

Eleven others were sentenced for their part in operating "industrial scale" labs in Lancashire and Greater Manchester in July.

Henderson played a key role in setting up the amphetamine lab at Victoria Mill in Earby, Lancashire in May and June last year, the court heard.

He installed drug-making equipment worth tens of thousands of pounds including a large reactor vessel, capable of producing 100 litres of amphetamine per batch.

Speaking after sentencing, the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit's Det Insp Jason Pye said he welcomed "the robust extra sentence handed to Henderson".

"Criminals who try to evade the wheels of justice will only end up with more time in prison to contemplate their actions," he added.