Two men seen exchanging a gun in Margate have been jailed for a total of more than ten years.
Lee Walker, 35, and Alex Vassallo, 28, were seen acting suspiciously in Milton Avenue on the evening of Saturday 18 June 2022.
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Officers attended the area and the pair were seen to exchange a bag between themselves.
As officers approached, Walker quickly walked away down an alley, but was followed and stopped.
Vassallo was seen inside a car, holding a rucksack into which the bag had been placed.
£20,000
He struggled with officers but was arrested and police searched the rucksack. It was found to contain a 8mm Bruni pistol and cocaine with a street value of up to £20,000.
Both men were arrested and later charged with possession of a firearm and possession of cocaine with intent to supply.
Disruption
They admitted both offences at Canterbury Crown Court and, on Friday 3 February 2023, Walker, from Ramsgate, received a five-year, seven-month sentence and Vassallo, from Broadstairs, was jailed for five years and three months.
Acting Detective Inspector Jon Saxby, of Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: ‘These arrests were an example of our commitment to relentlessly disrupt and tackle the activities of serious criminals.
‘I am pleased a weapon which could have been used to threaten or harm people in Kent has been removed from the streets, along with class A drugs whose sale would have benefited a criminal network.’