23 years for drug theft detective

A corrupt detective who stole enormous amounts of seized drugs and conspired to sell them back on to the streets with his brother, making them at least £600,000, has been jailed for 23 years.

West Yorkshire Police Detective Constable Nicholas McFadden, 38, helped himself to more than £1 million of heroin, cocaine and cannabis by exploiting "slack" procedures while working at secret evidence stores.

He and his brother, Simon McFadden, 41, who has been jailed for 16 years, conspired to sell the drugs back to underworld contacts.

A judge sentencing the duo at Leeds Crown Court said both were motivated by one factor - an "insatiable greed" that made them "so much money that they simply didn't know how to spend it", but ultimately led to their downfall.

The brothers lived a champagne lifestyle, splashing out on exotic holidays, designer clothing, expensive jewellery, pricey artwork, home improvements and private number plates for their cars, jurors in the five-week trial heard.

Simon McFadden also indulged his love of expensive sausages, which he and his wife Karen, 41, an NHS medical secretary, washed down with gallons of champagne.

When police raided Nicholas McFadden's family home in Castleford, West Yorkshire, they found almost £160,000 in banknotes stuffed into sacks in his garage and £20,000 hidden around his house. They also discovered £6,000 in his performance car.

Simon McFadden had £160,000 which could not be accounted for and claimed it was casino winnings. He had, in reality, lost £8,000 at the casino in the period in question.

Judge Tom Bayliss said: "The two of you were putting back on the streets drugs which successful police operations had taken off the streets. And in doing so you became very rich."

However, he added: "The effect on all of you is devastating. For a brief period, crime paid for your extravagances - but now you have a lifetime to regret it."