Drug dealer who provided fraudulent documents to police is jailed

A man has been jailed for drug dealing and providing fraudulent identification documents to police.

Olkedi Lika, 26, of Wherstead Road, Ipswich, was given a 31-month custodial sentence at Ipswich Crown Court yesterday, Monday 14 October.

Officers from Suffolk Constabulary’s South Sentinel team stopped a silver Nissan Qashqai on Franciscan Way in Ipswich on 31 August.

Lika introduced himself and used his mobile phone to produce an image of a driving licence with his name and photograph, however, officers suspected the licence was false and Lika was detained for a search.

Further investigations led to evidence of involvement in the supply of Class A drugs.

Lika initially gave officers a false home address, but a further address was located in Wherstead Road, Ipswich.

The property was searched and an approximate 0.5kilogram block of cocaine was found, with a street value of around £15,000, along with individual deals of cocaine, drug dealing paraphernalia and £6,871 in cash.

After being arrested and questioned for a number of offences, Lika was charged with possession with intent to supply (PWITS) cocaine, possession of criminal property, possession of an identification document with intent, driving without insurance and driving without a license and remanded in custody.

Lika pleaded guilty at court to all offences and was sentenced to 31 months’ imprisonment for PWITS cocaine with concurrent sentences of six months for both the criminal property and counterfeit document offences.

In addition to the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs, paraphernalia and his phone, the court ordered that the cash be forfeited under Section 27 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, alongside his vehicle.

Rob Ostler, an investigator within the Sentinel South team, said: “In just over six weeks, with valuable assistance from a number of teams across the constabulary, a drug dealer was charged, remanded, convicted and sentenced, while half a kilogram of cocaine was removed from our streets along with £6,871 which was the proceeds of Lika’s criminal activity.

“This is a great result and further proof that the Sentinel Team is actively targeting those trying to profit from organised crime in the Ipswich area.”

The arrest and investigation was led by the Sentinel South team. The three Sentinel teams across the South, West and Eastern areas of the county provide enhanced coverage of Suffolk’s road network to proactively disrupt serious and organised criminal activity as well as increase police visibility.

The mobile units disrupt criminals and protect communities across Suffolk’s road network using a variety of techniques to deal with offenders involved.

If you suspect drug activity report this via the website www.suffolk.police.uk/contact-us/report-something/report-crime, call 101, or alternatively you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers to report anonymously – either online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org or by calling 0800 555 111.

In an emergency you should always call 999.