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A criminal network that flooded south Wales with an estimated £8m worth of Class A drugs has been dismantled following a year-long police investigation.
The operation
Zekkam Ali, 37, ran a sophisticated organised crime group from Newport, regularly travelling to Birmingham to purchase bulk quantities of heroin and crack cocaine from upstream suppliers. The network operated a dedicated drugs phone line with more than 800 customer numbers on its books – so well established that it barely needed to advertise.
Each day, customers received postcodes directing them to drop-off points on rough ground around Newport. The buyer base stretched across south Wales, Gloucestershire, and Somerset, ranging from low-level street users to wholesale dealers.
Ali recruited juveniles to work as part of the enterprise. One 16-year-old was found carrying a knife, wraps of heroin, cash, and a mobile phone. A 17-year-old was discovered with crack cocaine, heroin, and cannabis worth £3,500 along with cash and a phone.
The network
Mohammed Boota, 37, stored and distributed drugs from his home address and accompanied Ali on supply trips to Birmingham. Azim Ahmed, 27, acted as cash courier, making 316 daily evening taxi journeys to collect takings from street dealers. When Ali was recalled to prison, Ahmed stepped up to run the drugs line for several months.
Asjad Ali, 33, couriered and delivered drugs across Newport and was involved in adulterating cocaine. He purchased a hydraulic press in July 2024 which was set up in a bedroom at the home he shared with his partner Sarah Chant, 32. Chant was seen by surveillance officers driving her husband to supply drugs on two occasions and was directly involved in discussions about purchasing the press.
Connor Beale, 29, was the customer-facing dealer, observed by officers conducting repeated hand-to-hand exchanges in vehicles and on foot in the Ringland area. Anthony Caruana, 31, was entrusted with running the drugs line during a period when Ali left the country to attend a wedding in Pakistan.
The takedown
On 22 October 2024, Asjad Ali was stopped by police on the M4 while driving a van. Officers found heroin and cocaine worth £10,000 in his jacket pocket. A subsequent search of his home in Commercial Road uncovered 5g of cocaine, 40g of heroin, and the hydraulic press. Chant was later stopped driving a BMW in Capel Crescent and arrested.
Ali was arrested at Heathrow Airport on his return from Pakistan. Warrants were executed on 24 October when the remaining defendants were taken into custody. Caruana was found with the burner phone containing the SIM card linked to the drugs line.
The scale
Prosecutor Clare Wilks described the operation as a “sophisticated and well-run criminal enterprise.” Police seized more than 700g of crack cocaine, over a kilogram of heroin, and £80,000 in cash. Phone message analysis indicated the group had supplied an estimated 38kg of heroin worth more than £3m and 55kg of crack cocaine valued at £5m.
Meanwhile, Ali’s bank records showed he had been receiving £30,000 in state benefits throughout the period.
Sentencing ⚖️
All defendants were sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs:
- Zekkam Ali, of Alma Street, Newport – 15 years’ imprisonment
- Mohammed Boota, of Severn Sisters Close, Newport – 11 years and three months’ imprisonment
- Asjad Ali, of Commercial Road, Newport – 10 years’ imprisonment
- Azim Ahmed, of Bassaleg Road, Newport – eight years and eight months’ imprisonment (also pleaded guilty to possessing criminal property)
- Connor Beale, of Broadwood Close, Newport – six years’ imprisonment
- Anthony Caruana, of Hillside Crescent, Rogerstone – five years’ imprisonment (also pleaded guilty to possessing criminal property)
- Sarah Chant, of Partridge Way, Duffryn – two years’ imprisonment, suspended for two years
