A DRUG dealing police inspector and the gym owner he conspired with to sell steroids have been jailed for a total of seven years.

Darren Lewis, 50, an inspector attached to the Territorial Support Group, and Nicholas Boys, 31, a gym owner of Walton Road, Southend, were convicted following a two-week trial at Southwark Crown Court.

Lewis was investigated by the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) in 2013 following information that the pair were were involved in the illegal supply of anabolic steroids.

Officers found that both Lewis and Boys appeared to have independent access to the garage at Lewis's home address.

On September 9 that year, when both men were at the garage, officers carried out a raid and the men were arrested.

Police found found filing cabinets and hold-alls containing a quantity of illegal steroids, prescription drugs, drug paraphernalia, a steroid production kit and raw materials to produce steroids.

Searches of Boys' and Lewis's homes resulted in a number of items being seized including phones and computers which provided evidence of their long standing friendship and their activity.

Det Insp Andrew Smith, of the Met's DPS, said: "This was a well-planned conspiracy to produce illegal substances and profit from their sale.

“The public has the right to expect that serving Met officers and staff conduct their lives within the law and behave in a manner which does not discredit the police service or undermine public confidence, whether on or off duty.

"There is no place in the Met for those officers or staff who engage in such criminality and the Anti-Corruption Command will investigate thoroughly those suspected of doing so.

“It is our job to take action on behalf of the thousands of brave men and women who work so hard to keep London safe every day."

Lewis was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to supply class C drugs, one count of conspiracy to produce class C drugs and one count of converting criminal property to the value of £66,000.

Boys was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to supply class C drugs and one count of conspiracy to produce class C drugs.

The pair were each jailed for a total for three-and-a-half years.

Boys was previously jailed over a steroid-selling business in 2012.

A Met Police spokesman said misconduct proceedings will commence “in due course”.