A gang who hid millions of pounds worth of cocaine inside raw chicken pallets as part of a drug-smuggling operation have been jailed.
WHAT INVESTIGATION REVEALS
Detectives found that the Birmingham-based group had transported more than a tonne of cocaine, resulting in ten members being jailed for a combined total of more than 80 years after they pleaded guilty to multiple different offences.
The operation included 225kg of cocaine that was set to have been exported to Australia before it was uncovered by West Midlands police.
The gang members are believed to have communicated with one another via EncroChat, a messaging platform that was often used by criminals due to being encrypted, until it was infiltrated by police in 2020.
HOW THEY WERE ARRESTED
Maninder Dosanjh, 39, of Cheslyn Hay, Staffordshire, and Amandeep Rishi, 42, from Birmingham, were arrested having being found with over 150kg of cocaine hidden in frozen chicken pallets while the pair were driving back to Birmingham from Essex.
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Detectives also found £1.6million in cash, some of which had been hidden inside vehicle tyres and van machinery disguised as mechanical service vehicles.
Detective chief inspector Pete Cooke, from West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit, said: ‘We were able to expose the gangs’ activities, which were both sophisticated and on a commercial scale, with them using a network of highly trusted individuals and a fleet of vehicles with hidden compartments,’ according to The Times.
The group members, who lived in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Walsall, South Staffordshire, and London, were all arrested in a 10-day period in July 2020.
