Southend: Fifth member of dismantled drug line sentenced

A drug dealer has been jailed for more than four years after a lengthy investigation dismantled a county line running harmful substances into Southend.

Daniel Mutambo, 32, admitted conspiring to supply Class A drugs after the work of our specialist Op Raptor team irrefutably linked him to the ‘Jay’ line.

Our investigation focused on the line’s drug dealing activity between June and December 2022.

Across this period, the ‘Jay’ line sent out tens of thousands of bulk advertising messages to customers, offering cocaine and heroin.

It operated out of Ilford, London, with runners working in shifts to sell harmful Class A substances on the streets of Southend.

Illicit operation handled hundreds of drug deals

A hearing at Basildon Crown Court on 13 December heard, by a conservative estimate, the line facilitated around 1,700 individual drug deals in that time, involving just short of 900g of Class A drugs.

This operation would have yielded tens of thousands of pounds in criminal profits.

It was found Mutambo, of Westley Road, Langdon Hills, operated at a higher level than the runners on the street.

He was arrested at an address in Ilford on 8 December 2022 and was found with the drugs line phone.

He made no comment to us in interview, but due to the weight of evidence compiled against him had no choice but to admit to his role.

Mutambo was also sentenced for assault occasioning actual bodily harm in relation to a separate incident of violence.

We arrested Mutambo on 19 July this year in Southend after we were called to reports of a fight between a group in Hartington Road.

He was found to have bitten a security guard while being restrained, causing bruising and bleeding.

Mutambo was jailed for 54 months for the drug dealing matter and 5 months for the assault.

Both sentences will run concurrently.

Drug line dismantled

Other members of the ‘Jay’ line have already been sentenced for their lesser roles as drug runners in the operation.

Debbie Johnson, 56, of Northview Drive, Westcliff, was found to be the person responsible for restocking drugs and keeping the runners supplied.

She admitted conspiring to supply Class A drugs and was sentenced to 40 months imprisonment at Basildon Crown Court on 10 March this year.

Amongst the runners directed to sell drugs on the street:

• Danielle Jackson, 40, of Rochford Road, Southend, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, with rehabilitation and unpaid work requirements attached.
• Renee Crocker, 25, of Shaftesbury Avenue, Southend, was sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, with rehabilitation and mental health treatment requirements attached.
• Sydney Hicks, 23, of York Road, Southend, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, with rehabilitation and mental health treatment requirements attached.

All three admitted conspiring to supply Class A drugs and were sentenced at the same court on 10 March.

'Drugs cause irreparable harm'

DS Rob Maile, of our Op Raptor team, said:

“This was a detailed investigation into a sophisticated drug dealing operation, which saw substances which cause irreparable harm to vulnerable users peddled on the streets of Southend.
“We have teams of experienced officers working around the clock, dedicated solely to cracking these drug supply networks.
“Criminals operating under the impression they can do business in Essex are demonstrably wrong.
“We will catch them and they will be punished with considerable prison sentences.”

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