Gang jailed over Shropshire drugs conspiracy

Heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis were sold on the streets for almost a year by the Telford group who were said to have had hundreds of customers.

Dozens of deals were carried out outside Morrison's supermarket in Donnington and the Wrekin Inn at Wellington was used, the court was told.

At Birmingham Crown Court yesterday, 11 men were given prison sentences or lengthy periods in youth custody for their part in the supply of drugs.

Judge Simon Drew said the defendants had all played a role in what was a large-scale conspiracy selling drugs, not only in and around Telford, but across Shropshire.

"It was an organised commercial operation and highly lucrative for those who were running it for more than year," he said.

Sandip Paul, 20, known as "D", was said to have "orchestrated" the sale of Class A drugs by the gang and had sold drugs to an undercover officer.

Mr Michael Duck, prosecuting, said that Paul, backed up by 20-year-old Naseer Khan and 21-year-old Waqar Hussain, led the supply of the Class A drugs – heroin and crack cocaine.

Brothers Mohammed Aqil, 23, and Adil Khan 22, took control of phones which controlled the sale of cannabis.

Waqar Hussain, 21, who had previously headed the cannabis operation, took over from Paul as the main dealer after he was arrested in March last year.

Mr Duck told the court that Nasser Khan, assisted in the sale of the Class A sales and had provided a link to the supply of cannabis. He said Robert Carter, 28, was trusted to transport large amounts of cannabis and carry lots of money from the dealing which was hidden in the door panel of his VW Golf.

Amar Hussain, 23, was recruited to bolster the drug conspirators at a late stage of the police investigation after others had been arrested.

Two undercover officers were at the hub of a police investigation to smash the conspiracy.

The pair – going by the names of Tony and Steve – exposed the drugs ring which had been operating in Telford and other areas of the county for more than a year.

Hours of surveillance, capturing the drug dealers on camera and extensive analysis of mobile phone traffic, led to 11 men all receiving custodial sentences at Birmingham Crown Court yesterday.

The gang were also described by Judge Simon Drew as "ruthless bullies" who had picked on the weak and vulnerable and exploited them for their own gain.

During the police inquiry a woman detective had her unmarked police car "boxed in" by a number of men, including one of the defendants, when they believed they were being followed.

She was subjected to what the judge described as "tirade of abuse and threats" by the men before another police officer arrived on the scene.

And they were not slow to threaten people who got on the wrong side of them. Members of the gang had forced their way into a property in Kingshaye Road in Wellington when they believed the owner owed them drugs or money.

And police have a recording of organiser Sandip Paul telling undercover officer 'Tony' about some potential local competition who he said had "been run out of town".

The whole drugs enterprise was said to have been a professional operation with a network of three main mobile phones used to organise deals. Individuals were using the numbers and SIM cards in different handsets.

If one dealer was out of action, there was little delay in recruiting others.

Gang members were sophisticated and known to each other and steeped in the supply of drugs.

The court was told a major spot for drug deals was the Morrison's supermarket at Donnington and also outside the Wrekin Inn at Wellington.

Most deals were conducted through the window of a car at a pre-arranged location with a "customer" handing over cash in exchange for bags of drugs before the dealer drove away.

Several different cars were used to transport drugs – a Lexus Hustler, a motorised scooter used predominantly used by organiser Sandip Paul, a Mercedes Sprinter van and a red Vauxhall Corsa, often driven by Nasser Khan, as well as a VW Golf used by Robert Carter.

The inquiry recorded more than 85 drug deals involving various combinations of the 11 defendants between December 2012 and August 15 last year.

There was frequent daily dealing and there were at least 400 potential customers and Sandip Paul, on one occasion, was known to have had enough drugs for up to 80 deals.

However, Paul was arrested in March last year and subsequently convicted for possessing class A drugs with intent to supply.

He was rumbled by the serial numbers on cash notes given to him by 'Tony' that had been recorded by police. It proved a watershed moment in the conspirators' activities.

A number of the group were too "spooked" to continue the Class A dealing but the cannabis dealing did continue.

Naseer Khan provided another mobile number to organise the cannabis deals to 'Tony'. He told the undercover officer to say 'Jay' had provided the number. Jay is Khan's own nickname.

Paul had gone "off the radar" but was still playing an important role in the cannabis trade as other defendants were recruited to act as couriers and make "face-to-face" deals with the customers.

Brothers Mohammed Aqil and Adil Khan had "run together" and had a management role. While not involved in any direct dealing they played a vital role in controlling the phones which were essential for the lucrative trade to flourish.

Using a range of vehicles was an attempt to conceal their activities but little did they know a significant amount of what they were doing was being recorded.

While the gang believed police may be onto them the dealing continued with members unaware that a significant amount of their activities were being recorded. West Mercia detectives – particularly the two undercover officers – were praised by Judge Simon Drew.

The charges:

Ten men from Telford and one from Shrewsbury all admitted their roles in the year-long conspiracy to supply drugs, including heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis, between September, 2012, and September last year.

They are: Sandip Paul, 20, of Kingshaye Road, Wellington, described as one of the organisers, was given a total of six and half years at a young offenders institution.

Naseer Khan, of Bush Close, Dothill, 20, was given a total of five-and-a-half years at a young offenders institution.

Waqar Hussain, 21, of Hurleybrook Way, Leegomery, was jailed for a total of three years and eight months. All three had admitted conspiring to supply heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis. Hussain had also admitted threatening behaviour in relation to intimidation of a witness.

Seven of the remaining eight defendants had all admitted their role in the conspiracy to supply cannabis.

Brothers Mohammed Aqil, 23, and Adil Khan, 22, both of Manor Road, Hadley, played a leading role in the cannabis operation. Aquil, who had a previous drugs conviction, was jailed for three years and Khan for two years.

Amar Hussain, 22, of Eyton Road, Dawley, Robert Carter, 28, of Bleachfield, Hanwood, Shrewsbury, and Wassiem Hussain, 22, of Crescent Road, Hadley, were all jailed for two years.

Mark Purves, 28, of Eyton Road, Dawley, was given 20 months, suspended for two years, with conditions of supervision and completing 75 hours unpaid work.

Sean Waddilove, 41, of Victoria Avenue, Wellington, was sentenced to 15 months.

Brian Harrison, 36, of Parkwood Park Lane, Woodside, who had pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of thousands of pounds worth of cannabis in January last year, was jailed for four months, but will be released having served time on remand.