Mother-of-five jailed for money laundering through the cocaine trade

A mother-of-five who admitted laundering £95,000 from her husband's cocaine trade has been jailed for 27 months.

Kerry Long, 36, of High Dyke, Navenby, spent the criminal cash on holidays, expensive clothes, dental work, home improvements, Amazon purchases and a part share in a static caravan.

Lincoln Crown Court heard Long ran Wavelength hair salon in Gainsborough and her role was to conceal and covert some of the proceeds from her husband's drugs enterprise.

Judge Simon Hirst told Long her husband, Daniel Long, was involved in the transportation of kilo deals of Class A drugs from West Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire and Leicestershire to Lincolnshire.

Within a week of police arresting Daniel Long, his wife withdrew over £13,000 from her children's bank accounts, the court heard.

She later admitted a charge of converting criminal property between January 1 2017 and 8 March 8 2020.

John McNally, mitigating, argued that rather than being involved in professional money laundering, Long got caught up in a family lifestyle which was better than it otherwise would have been.

"She had sought to have a genuine business, it isn't a case where the business was a front for other things," Mr McNally told the court.

"Most of the spending is rather low level Amazon purchases. The static caravan was with other family members."

Mr McNally said Long was also integral to her "excellent family unit" and argued her five children would suffer if she was jailed.

"Her history of relationships have not always been a happy one," Mr McNally added.

Mr McNally said the delay in sentencing Long had also allowed genuine remorse to sink in.

"Lots of smaller amounts when you look back became a very significant amount indeed," Mr McNally explained. "She did not do that risk analysis."

Passing sentence Judge Simon Hirst told Long her case was difficult.

But Judge Hirst reminded Long: "The misery inflicted by the importation of Class A drugs is well known."

Judge Hirst added: "Your purchases included a static caravan, holidays, dental work, home improvements and expensive clothes.

"Indeed on one occasion Daniel Long warned you not to draw attention by purchasing the caravan.

"Your response was to put it in someone else's name and put it through the business."