Annette Lawrence, known professionally as Lisa Mercedez, has received a two‑year jail sentence suspended for two years after being convicted of her part in a County Lines operation supplying heroin and crack across London and Essex. Her co‑defendant, self‑styled promoter Sheldon “Lucky British” Johnson, has been jailed for a decade under the same investigation.

Detectives from Essex Police’s Operation Raptor and the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit have dismantled a County Lines drug network that portrayed itself as a legitimate music enterprise. Sheldon Johnson, 50, known as “Lucky British”, cultivated an image of wealth and status but was in fact orchestrating the supply of crack cocaine and heroin across Essex and London.

Johnson was apprehended in June 2024 during a sting operation in Woodford Bridge, where officers seized wraps of Class A drugs, cash, and his so‑called “drug line” phone. A subsequent search of his Chigwell home uncovered approximately £25,000 in cash and designer goods valued at nearly £250,000. At Chelmsford Crown Court on 31 March 2025, he was sentenced to ten years in prison for leading the trafficking operation .

His co‑defendants, Nyasha Best and Annette Lawrence, better known as rapper and DJ Lisa Mercedez, were instrumental in facilitating the distribution network. Best received a seven‑year sentence. Lawrence appeared before the same court on 13 July, receiving a two‑year prison term, suspended for two years, and was ordered to complete 50 hours of unpaid work plus a 30‑day rehabilitation programme.

Detective Sergeant David Wilkinson described the trio as “the lowest of the low”, emphasising the sheer impact of their Class A drug operation on vulnerable communities and crediting the collaborative efforts of Essex and Eastern regional teams for bringing them to justice. Essex Police have invoked the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the financial gains of the group, reinforcing their commitment to targeting drug-dealing networks that exploit County Lines methods.

Mercedez's career began in 2005 when she was introduced to Stylo G, with whom she later collaborated as part of the Stylo G-led group, Warning Crew. She eventually branched out as a solo artist and made her debut with the single "Let's Get Drunk" in 2014. In 2020, Dancehall star Lisa Mercedez revealed that she was making a conscious effort to cover up more and move away from wearing skimpy outfits after reverting to Islam.