[A] drug dealer has been jailed for eight years after telling National Crime Agency investigators that £1m worth of drugs in his home were being stored for someone else.
Edward Donaldson had 25,595 ecstasy tablets worth up to £256,000 alone stored in his flat in Southview court, Waterloo, Liverpool.
NCA officers found a haul that included: £3,000 cash, 84.8g of crystal MDMA, 229g of cocaine, cathinone derivatives (like amphetamine) worth £774,135 and psychoactive drug mexedrone worth £30,000 – totalling more than £1m.
Donaldson, 39, had banked £27,810 in unexplained cash between March 2015 and March 2017.
In interview with the NCA he said he was storing the drugs for someone whom he refused to name.
The drugs were kept in holdalls, a suitcase, in a hallway cupboard and also within a void above Donaldson’s fridge. Smaller sized dealer packages had also been prepared.
NCA officers arrested Donaldson on 20 March 2017 at Manchester Airport as he tried to collect a consignment that Border Force officers had intercepted.
Donaldson’s phone showed a text conversation with someone called Hath about a “kid” dying after taking drugs in Newcastle:
Hath: ‘Some kid died in Newcastle last night‘
Donaldson: ’Not off mine jarg them ours r proper‘
Hath: ‘I’ll ask another kid tomorrow im meeting’
Donaldson: ‘Ok let me know asap as theyre flying out mate’
Hath: ‘Cant believe your fella is brown bread probably had one of your little fellas……’
Donaldson: ‘Listen mine are the bollocks lad…nothing better’
Donaldson admitted a range of charges including intent to supply class A and B drugs and was jailed at Liverpool Crown Court today.
NCA senior investigating officer Jon Hughes said: “This operation demonstrates the NCA’s commitment to tackling drugs supply, which ploughs money back into other serious and organised crime and fuels violence and exploitation.
“Among Donaldson’s drugs haul were psychoactive substances which have been linked to emergency hospital admissions and deaths in some cases – like other drugs, you can’t be sure what’s in them.
“The Border Force interception helped us to prevent these drugs being sold in towns and cities across the North West and beyond.”
Donaldson admitted:
Possession with intent to supply MDMA Class A
Supply MDMA Class A
Possession with intent to supply cocaine Class A
Possession with intent to supply cathinone derivatives CEC – Class B
Possession with intent to supply cathinone derivatives MDBC – Class B
Possession with intent to supply cathinone derivatives MEC – Class B
Possession with intent to supply cathinone derivatives TMPVP – Class B
Possession with intent to supply cathinone derivatives, namely Propylone
Possession of a psychoactive substance, namely Mexedrone, known or suspected to be a psychoactive substance and which you intended to supply to another person for its consumption for its psychoactive effects
