A judge praised police officers involved in an undercover operation as the last member of a gang of drug dealers was jailed, writes Rebecca Smith.

At Oxford Crown Court yesterday, Judge Anthony King said the officers in the case were entitled to the highest commendation from the courts.

He spoke after jailing Joszeph Vizi, 30, formerly of South Street, Banbury, the last of the nine gang members to be sentenced after Operation Jeopardy in Banbury last year.

Vizi, who moved to Somerset, was charged with three offences of supplying heroin between October 20 and December 12 last year. He was jailed for three-and-a-half years.

The operation uncovered heroin with a street value of between 25,000 and 30,000.

After Vizi was sentenced, Det Insp Brendan O'Dowda, head of Northern Oxfordshire CID said: "The raids were carried out simultaneously at 15 addresses in Banbury after we spent six weeks amassing information and intelligence about hard drugs in Banbury.

"These stiff sentences give out a strong message that the courts will not tolerate heroin on the streets of Banbury.

It brings untold misery and even death for the addicts and spins off into other crimes with the users desperate to get cash for the drugs." The nine heroin dealers sentenced as a result of the operation were: Jason Grimes, five years; Ghulan Murtaza, five years; Trevor Jackson, four-and-a-half years; Lucie Guy-Smith, four-and-a-half years; Inderjit Singh, four-and-a-half years; Kuldeep Singh, four years; Kelly Plant, three-and-a-half years; Joszeph Vizi, three-and-a-half years; and Bobby Knowles, two years and three months.

Murtaza pleaded not guilty, but was found guilty. The remaining eight admitted the charges.