Dealers who used phone line to sell drugs jailed

Two drug dealers who used a phone line to advertise heroin and cocaine have been jailed.

Wayne Kassim, 39, and Mark Duce, 51 used the alias "DelBoy" to advertise drugs in Canterbury.

Police began investigating after a medical incident involving a drug user who had bought drugs from the DelBoy line.

At Canterbury Crown Court on Friday, Kassim, was sentenced to seven years in prison, while Duce was jailed for two years and eight months.

Kent Police said a phone number was found to have advertised the drugs, while a VW Beetle and a Vauxhall Mokka, owned by Duce, was believed to be linked to the dealing.

Officers linked the times the drugs were bought and sold to the movement of the two vehicles between London, Maidstone, Canterbury and Thanet.

On 8 February, Kassim and Duce were both arrested.

The phone used to advertise the drugs was found on Kassim, while a ball of heroin was discovered discarded nearby.

Duce, of Hillcrest Road, Littlebourne, later admitted supplying heroin and cocaine.

Kassim, of Waterlow Road, Maidstone, was convicted of the same charges, as well as possession of heroin with intent to supply, following a trial.

Det Con Martin Aird said: “Class A drugs of this kind put the lives of users at risk and lead to knock-on crime and violence in the communities where they are sold.

“We will be relentless in tracking down those involved in the trade, bringing them before the courts and taking them off the streets of Kent.”

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