TWO men who took over a Ludlow house and used it as a base for county line drug dealing have been jailed.

In October, West Mercia Police raided an address in Milton Road over concerns it had been 'cuckoo-ed' by county line drug dealers.

Cuckoo-ing is when drug dealers from outside the area take over the home of someone who is vulnerable and usually dependent on drugs or alcohol.

Two men from Birmingham were found in the address along with a quantity of drugs.

Sebastian Snow, 26 from Regan Crescent and Theo Thomas, also 26 from Robert Road, were sentenced at Shrewsbury Crown Court yesterday after pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply class A and B drugs.

Snow was given two years after he was found in possession of more than 100 wraps of crack worth £1700 and £430 worth of heroin.

Thomas was found in possession of £100 worth of cannabis hidden in an empty crisp tube and £930 cash. He was sentenced to 19 months.

Detective sergeant Andy Chatting, from the Local Organised Crime Team based in Shrewsbury, said: "I hope this sends out a warning to drug dealers who think they can come into our county to deal drugs.

"We are targeting them and taking action to make sure they are put before the courts and ultimately jailed."

Local police teams work closely with other agencies to make sure those who could be targeted by county lines drug dealers are safeguarded and measures put in place to protect them.