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Posted on the 9th January 2025 in PHTM News
BIRMINGHAM CABBIE JAILED FOR 11 YEARS FOR ROLE IN COCAINE AND FIREARMS GANG
A Birmingham taxi driver has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for his role in a sophisticated criminal network that trafficked cocaine and firearms across the north of England.
Safdar Pervez, 57, from Edgbaston, operated under the EncroChat handle "Satanicgate," acting as a trusted courier for the gang led by convicted drug lord Carl O'Flaherty.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation, codenamed Operation Venetic, dismantled the group after infiltrating the encrypted communication platform EncroChat.
The gang, active from 2019 to 2020, sourced large quantities of cocaine and chemicals used to produce amphetamine.
"Chefs" within the network, including Michal Stanislawczuk ("Sizabelarm," "Polishshaman") and David Brierley ("Kingchef-uk"), oversaw drug production at locations in Leeds and Bradford.
Pervez played a crucial role in transporting drugs and vast sums of cash across the region, including deliveries of cocaine to high-level customer Daryll Hall in County Durham.
Hall, sentenced to 15 years in his absence after absconding, received kilos of diluted cocaine from Pervez.
Stanislawczuk was jailed for 12 years for his involvement in drug production, including a failed attempt to extract cocaine from 37 liters of oil.
Brierley, the amphetamine producer, received a 12-year and six-month sentence.
NCA Operations Manager Nigel Coles stated: "This investigation has dismantled a dangerous network, from the leader to the couriers transporting drugs and firearms across the north of England.
"Significant quantities of drugs have been removed from our communities, along with deadly firearms. This sends a strong message that the NCA is committed to protecting the public from serious and organised crime."
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