By Eric King-
Three men have been jailed for more than 22 years after a £4.5 million drugs bust in Cricklewood
Police officers and workers from the National Crime Agency nailed the culprits as they Lentian Isoufaj moving a cocaine-filled holdall from a van parked in Paddock Road into a minicab being driven by Lumturi Bitri at about 8.20pm on November 10, 2016.
Officers followed the van to Hanger Lane where it was stopped after being tipped off about the move. Officers then found 32kg of cocaine worth an estimated street value of £4.5m, which they seized along with an abundance of cash. 33 year old Lentian Isoufaj from Cricklewood, North West London, was arrested and found with false vehicle documents.
His 30 year old pal, was also arrested, and a further 2kg of cocaine was seized at his home in Oxford. 28 year old Arjon Hyseni, who was a passenger in the van and also from Oxford was arrested after a struggle with an officer.
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The trio pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and were sentenced at the Old Bailey on March 23. Isoufaj and Hyseni were jailed for eight-and-a half-years each while Bitri was jailed for five-and-half.
Bitri was also ordered to hand over £4,645 and Hyseni £1,500 under the Misuse of Drugs Act.
Matthew McMillan from the Met’s organised crime partnership, said: “We remain determined to crack down on the supply of Class A drugs within organised crime groups and this latest success proves there will be no let up.
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“This was a substantial amount of drugs which has been removed from our streets.
“We are committed to using all the means at our disposal in our efforts to disrupt organised crime in London and across the UK
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