By Tim Parsons-
A group of semi-professional footballers has been handed lengthy prison sentences for conspiring to supply cocaine worth an estimated £208-£260 million.
The defendants, including Adam Pepara from Solihull, were part of a highly organized criminal network that distributed drugs on an industrial scale across the UK. They were described by cops as a ‘house of cards’.
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The downfall of this ‘house of cards’ began after Metropolitan Police officers stopped and searched Luke Skeete’s van, (pictured(discovering 8kg of cocaine. The subsequent investigation, which involved expert analysis of Skeete’s phone and other seized items, led detectives to uncover the wider network of conspirators.
After the 36-year-old was arrested, a further 123kg of cocaine and 224kg of ketamine was recovered from storage units in west London that he had control of.
Ketamine that was seized in the investigation. Pic: Met Police
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On May 17, the group, which included Shaquille Hippolyte-Patrick, 29, Jamarl Joseph, 28, Andrew Harewood, 34, Melchi Emanuel-Williamson, 29, and Pepara, 35, were sentenced to over 104 years in total at Isleworth Crown Court in London. They had all pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to charges of conspiracy to supply controlled class A drugs (cocaine) and class B drugs (ketamine).
The criminal enterprise was exposed in October 2022 when police officers stopped Skeete’s van and found 8kg of cocaine hidden in the rear. A recovered video showed Skeete transferring a holdall of drugs from his van, leading to his arrest and the discovery of an additional 123kg of cocaine and 224kg of ketamine in storage units in west London.
Specialist interrogation of Skeete’s phone revealed a secure messaging platform used by the group. Despite their attempts to conceal their identities with individual handles, painstaking detective work identified each member. The group’s messages detailed their sophisticated, professional operation to supply cocaine throughout the UK.
Detectives spent countless hours examining CCTV footage, which showed the gang regularly accessing storage units with drugs concealed in holdalls and boxes. It was determined that between April 10, 2022, and October 20, 2022, they conspired to supply more than 2.7 tonnes of high-grade cocaine, valued between £208,160,000 and £260,200,000.
On September 28, 2023, Specialist Crime officers executed arrest warrants at addresses linked to the group in London and Birmingham. All members were arrested, charged, and remanded in custody. Their sentences are as follows:
Adam Pepara, 35 (of Wharf Lane, Solihull): 29 years, reduced to 24 years
Shaquille Hippolyte-Patrick, 29 (of Delgarno Gardens, North Kensington): 26 years and six months, reduced to 18 years and nine months
Jamarl Joseph, 28 (of Lily Gardens, Wembley): 26 years and six months, reduced to 17 years and six months Andrew Harewood, 34
Melchi Emanuel-Williamson, 29 (of Wesley Avenue, North Acton): 21 years and six months, reduced to 14 years
Luke Skeete, 36 (of Evergreen Drive, West Drayton): 22 years and six months, reduced to 13 years and one month
(Top row from left) Melchi Emanuel-Williamson, Luke Skeete, Jamarl Joseph. (Bottom row from left) Andrew Harewood, Shaquille Hippolyte-Patrick, Adam Pepara Image
: Met Police
Police Constable Perry from Specialist Crime North commented on the operation: “The operation we’ve dismantled here is not some minor undertaking involving a group of chancers – this is a highly organized criminal group who were supplying drugs on an industrial scale throughout the UK. The sentences received reflect the gravity of what they had been doing.”
He added, “This is a criminal group who had otherwise promising careers – semi-pro footballers with other jobs and courses they were undertaking – but they were motivated by making money from drugs that fuel misery and violence on our streets.
Anyone else wondering if they can make cash from this type of activity should take a look at these sentences and think again, because it’s only a matter of time before you are caught.”
Detective Constable Janes, also from Specialist Crime North, said: “With Skeete’s arrest, we brought this house of cards down. After he was detained, we secured valuable evidence on his mobile phone, helping us launch another investigation that led to us identifying his conspirators. Forensic examination of that device and invaluable CCTV evidence helped us compile a case so compelling that none of them had any choice but to plead guilty.”
The lengthy sentences handed down to these individuals underscore the seriousness of their crimes and serve as a stark warning to others involved in the illegal drug trade.
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