A group of drug dealers involved in the supply of nearly half a ton of cocaine worth up to £17 million have been convicted, following a detailed investigation by specialist detectives.
The four, who brought in cocaine from the Netherlands to distribute throughout London, were caught in the act by officers who had launched a proactive operation.
Bert De Jong (59) of the Netherlands, Hussain Sakhi (22) of Laughton Road, Northolt and Zaibaa Zahur (21) of Harlington Road, Uxbridge were convicted on Monday of conspiracy to evade the prohibition on the importation of cocaine and conspiracy to supply cocaine, following a four-week trial at Kingston Crown Court.
Sakhi and Zahur were also found guilty of conspiracy to supply cocaine.
A fourth drug dealer, Justyn Morris (23) of Upper Lees Road, Slough, pleaded guilty on March 11 to conspiracy to evade the prohibition on the importation of cocaine and conspiracy to supply cocaine.
The court heard that millions of pounds of cocaine were distributed by lorries across London.
Lorries would stop outside the capital, and the drugs would be collected and then be sent to ‘retail suppliers’ on a weekly basis.
On July 16, 2024, a holiday let was booked in Marsham, near Norwich. The following day a van was seen outside the address.
The van, driven by Morris, then drove to an industrial estate in Norwich, where he met De Jong in a lorry. De Jong gave Morris, who then drove back to the holiday let, three cardboard boxes.
Morris was then intercepted by officers who had seen a suspected handover.
Met officers then searched the van and the three boxes were found hidden behind black cladding.
A total of 70kg worth of cocaine was found – worth between £1.75million and £2.45million.
Sakhi and Zahur went to the holiday let later that day, to ‘view’ it. Raising suspicion, officers arrived and searched the pair.
A phone showed messages between Sakhi and an unidentified contact, who Morris had also been in contact with.
All three were arrested by the Met that day and charged on July 18.
What followed was an extensive investigation, which proved the defendants had all been involved in the supply of millions of pounds worth of cocaine.
Drug ledgers they kept as a record of the movement and distribution of the cocaine were examined during the trial and established the group had moved nearly 500kg.
De Jong would bring the drugs into the country from the Netherlands and Morris would pick them up and pass them to Sakhi and Zahur, who would then distribute them.
On July 23, De Jong, when entering the country again, was arrested. He claimed he had no knowledge of what he was bringing into the country, but evidence suggested on his phone that he would send ‘tokens’ to his counterparts, implying the drugs had been delivered.
Detective constable Leon Ure, of the Met’s Specialist Crime South team who led the investigation, said: “This has been a complex and lengthy investigation to dismantle a group supplying drugs across London. It has been part of a wider, proactive drug operation led by the Specialist Crime South team.
“This investigation shows the breadth of work the specialist crime unit deals with and I’d like to thank every officer who was involved in the case.
“Drug dealing has a huge impact on Londoners. It fuels further crime and impacts the heart of our communities. This group is an example of how we will investigate and hold offenders to account.”
They are due to be sentenced tomorrow at Kingston Crown Court.
