Father and Son Drug Empire Busted at Clacton Furniture Shop
A father and son duo used a second-hand furniture shop in Clacton as a cover to push a large-scale illegal drug operation. After years of police surveillance, Darren Simmons, 58, and his son Charlie, 30, have finally been sentenced.
Drugs Worth Over £100k Seized
Darren Simmons ran Simmons and Sons on Old Road as a front to stash and supply Class A, B, and C drugs. The Tendring Neighbourhood Policing Team conducted multiple raids, uncovering £98,000 to £117,000 worth of illegal goods in 2023 and 2024. Confiscated items included:
- 132 grams of cocaine
- 21 grams of amphetamines
- Over 12 kilograms of cannabis
- Thousands of counterfeit cigarettes
- Prescription drugs like diazepam and sildenafil
Police found communications that revealed the furniture business was “kept afloat by the drugs money.”
Massive Drug Stash Found at Family Home
The investigation escalated when officers raided Darren’s Marlowe Road home in Jaywick last November, seizing an additional kilogram each of cocaine and cannabis valued at over £31,000. Darren was arrested and remains in custody.
Heavy Sentences for Essex’s Drug Kingpins
At Chelmsford Crown Court on 13 February, His Honour Judge Sawyer slammed Darren as “the driving force” behind the drug ring, calling cocaine supply “a blight on Essex.”
“Addiction to these drugs causes immeasurable harm and drives offending,” the judge said.
Darren was jailed for six years and eight months. Charlie, described as “an important cog” who has “turned a corner,” received a two-year suspended sentence. His conditions include 200 hours of unpaid work and six months of GPS monitoring.
The police are pursuing criminal profits under the Proceeds of Crime Act to recoup money from the illegal trade.
