Members of an organised gang linked to a haul of cocaine with an estimated street value of £2.25 million have been jailed for more than 80 years.
The 17-strong group of 15 men and two women, which included Reshan Singh, 25, of Upper Clapton, were apprehended by detectives from the Met’s Central Task Force after substantial quantities of the Class A drug was intercepted at addresses across London.
Isleworth Crown Court heard how detectives discovered the large-scale criminal network after seizing a firearm in Middlesex last April.
Each arrest connected to the police operation led officers to an additional member of the gang and covert officers witnessed a number of large-scale drug deals taking place.
During one transaction a gang member was seen handing over a holdall containing £93,940 to an associate in exchange for cocaine.
Another man was apprehended with 62.4 grams of cocaine hidden in his underpants along with £2,000 in cash and a Rolex watch concealed in a bag.
A further member was spotted by covert officers moving blocks of cocaine in the boot of his Audi sports car.
When the vehicle was stopped a search revealed 993 grams of cocaine with a street value of £360,000.
Just six days later another gang member was stopped transporting boxes of the drug to a new location.
Det Insp Chris Heerey of the East Central Task Force said the “highly organised” gang imported large amounts of relatively pure cocaine before moving it to various storage locations.
“Once prepared and cut for street usage it would be handed over to the smaller scale drug dealers to sell on,” he said.
“Once the main gang members were intercepted my team was able to locate the rest of the group as they tried to move the drugs to alternative locations.
“They literally fell like dominoes from the main cocaine importers at the top end right down to the street drug dealers.”
The 17 appeared at Isleworth Crown Court between May 9 and August 19 where they were convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine and money laundering offences.
Singh was convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine and sentenced to four and a half years for conspiracy to supply cocaine.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here