Behind Cartel Lines: How I infiltrated and brought down Britain’s biggest drug networks

'Life is full of uncertainty when you work deep undercover. I had to forget Steve Bentley and become totally immersed in the psyche of Steve Jackson. I was ready to do almost anything to further my cover. It was one great adrenaline rush fuelled by copious amounts of alcohol, hash, weed and some cocaine.'

This is the true story behind Operation Julie, the groundbreaking police investigation that resulted in the break-up of one of the largest LSD manufacturing operations in the world, by the detective who infiltrated their global drug empire.

In the mid-1970s, at the age of 29, Stephen Bentley, a fresh-faced detective, turned himself into Steve Jackson, a dope-smoking, hard-drinking hippie. His time spent undercover with a gang making and distributing LSD,, as well as infiltrating a cartel planning to smuggle cocaine into Britain, helped bring down two criminal networks. However, the operation also led to deep personal aftershocks felt long after the case closed.

As we get up close and personal with the operators of the drug supply chain that fuelled 1970s counterculture, the story becomes laden with heavy drug-taking, blurred lines between cop, criminal and friend, and creeping doubts about who Steve really is.

Stephen Bentley's insider account shows what it really takes to go undercover - to befriend, to betray and to bury your sense of self.