Three county line dealers from London who targeted Maidstone with cocaine and cannabis are starting lengthy prison sentences.
In 2022, detectives identified an organised crime group were using a specific phone number to target drug users in the county town.
Following a complex investigation, on 30 March 2022, a search was executed at an address in Enfield where the dealers were thought to be.
Entry to the premises was forced in the early hours through some patio doors and Sidrit Musallari was arrested in a downstairs bedroom. The constables progressed upstairs where they found a bathroom had been secured. The door was forced open and the occupant, Besim Saraci, was detained. A third suspect, Nuhi Duraku, was also arrested in an upstairs bedroom and a search of the property was completed.
Officers seized 33 separate wraps of cocaine and a solid block of the drug weighing 222 grams in total. Quantities of cutting agent, digital scales, mobile phones, around 1.8 kilograms of cannabis bud and £9,495 in cash were also recovered.
Two Mercedes parked outside the address were also seized and the three men were taken into custody. The minimum street value of the cannabis and cocaine was later estimated to be £34,380.
Musallari and Duraku, and Saraci were all from Enfield and were later charged with being concerned in the supply of cocaine and being concerned in the supply of cannabis.
Saraci, aged 34, and Duraku, aged 32, pleaded guilty to both counts at Maidstone Crown Court. Musallari, aged 37, pleaded not guilty and was convicted of both indictments on 30 September. On Monday 22 May 2023, Musallari was sentenced to eight years and nine months’ imprisonment, and both Saraci and Duraku were jailed for five years and six months.
Detective Constable Chris Welham, of West Kent CID, said: ‘These three dealers sought to supply large quantities of cocaine and cannabis into Maidstone and had no concern for the damage their actions would cause to the families of drug users and local communities.
‘These criminals are quite rightly starting a lengthy prison sentence and we will be seeking to confiscate the seized cash and their vehicles using the Proceeds of Crime Act.’