Drugs gang sentenced for conspiracy to import cannabis

An organised crime group who used parcel delivery services to ship large quantities of cannabis to the UK from the USA have been sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court.

The investigation revealed that Abubakr Khawar, 28, acted as the head of the organisation, directing others to receive the parcels or identify properties to be used for the receipt of the parcels. The parcels would then be redistributed to other suppliers and users.

Border Force intercepted 327kg of cannabis that was intended for delivery to properties being used by the group. The drugs would have had a street value of approximately £3.2 million. 

Jenny Hopkins of the CPS said: “This group was highly organised and criminally sophisticated. 

“They were arranging and managing transatlantic deliveries to about 80 properties in the UK and then used an extensive distribution network to move the drugs on.

“They tried to evade responsibility for their criminality by making regular changes to the distribution patterns, but they were still caught.

“The Crown Prosecution Service built a strong case from the evidence, which resulted in these convictions.

“This case demonstrates the commitment of the Crown Prosecution Service and law enforcement partners to disrupting drug supply chains and bringing those involved in serious organised crime to justice."

The following defendants pleaded guilty to two offences, namely conspiracy to contravene section 170 of the Customs and Excise Management Act, 1979, and conspiracy to supply cannabis.

• Abubakr Khawar was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment
• Abdu Husain was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment
• Mohammed Nural Hussain was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment
• Solomon Bertram was sentenced to 22 months’ imprisonment
• Ceiron Jones was sentenced to 26 months’ imprisonment
• Kyle Solowyk was sentenced to 34 months’ imprisonment
• Andrew Pethers was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment
• Daniel Marshall was sentenced to 32 months’ imprisonment

The following two defendants were convicted of the same two offences after a full trial:

• Sean Montgomery was sentenced to three years and six months’ imprisonment
• Steven Munroe sentenced to 32 months’ imprisonment.