London dealer a key figure in sales of cocaine in town
CAUGHT BY UNDERCOVER COPS
A DRUG dealer from London who became a key figure in the heroin and cocaine trade in a Leicestershire market town was caught out by undercover cops.
John Nwagobo, right, from Tottenham, was arrested as part of Operation Lionheart, a Leicestershire Police campaign which was launched last year to attack drug dealing across the city and county.
The force said the 24-year-old was directly involved in a series of drug sales to undercover police officers in Loughborough in late 2018.
He was arrested during a series of Operation Lionheart drugs raids in April last year.
He appeared at Leicester Crown Court on Friday and was jailed for four years, having admitted two drug supply offences.
He is the latest dealer from the capital or a larger city such as Birmingham, to be caught selling drugs in Loughborough.
Previously, the Mercury has reported the force’s belief that crime gangs in cities including London, Birmingham, Nottingham and Coventry have infiltrated the Leicestershire drugs market.
Also, police have warned that gangs are moving youngsters in and out of the city and county to sell drugs for them.
This practice of exploiting young people, who are given phones in order to operate, is known as “county lines”.
In a statement on Nwagobo’s case, the force said: “He played a significant role in a county line operating in the town in 2018.
“Between October 26 and December 23, 2018, he directly sold drugs to plain clothes officers and was involved on 10 occasions for runners making deals after orders were placed through a dedicated phone number.
“The 24-year-old was arrested for his part during the force’s enforcement stage for the operation in April 2019. He was due to stand trial for the offences but pleaded guilty to two counts of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs.”
Operation Lionheart has resulted in more than 100 arrests.
The vast majority of those suspects have been charged with drugrelated offences.
A number of cases have already passed through the crown court while others are due to be heard in the near future.