A MAJOR criminal operation laundering more than £24m and supplying 1,000 kilos of cocaine from a 'safe house' in Wycombe has landed a gang of eight a combined prison sentence of more than 110 years.

Following an intense investigation by the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit, the gang was sentenced at Aylesbury Crown Court yesterday (Dec 23).

The court, sitting in Amersham, heard how the criminals used an encrypted communications programme to organise and facilitate the supply of 1,000 kilos of cocaine, and 50 kilos of heroin - laundering £24m of criminal proceeds between January and September 2020.

Police sparked their investigation in April 2020 after the encrypted platform EncroChat was taken down amid law changes, and data from the programme revealed the huge scale of the criminality.

The group, headed up by Sandeep Rao, of Queen Street in Maidenhead, ran their criminal operation from an apartment in Rutland Street, High Wycombe.

The premises, identified by police as the ‘safe house', was used to store multi-kilo quantities of cocaine as well as to process and stockpile millions of pounds of criminal proceeds. 

Maidenhead's Rao worked with a supplier in Dubai, ordering on a weekly basis, and arranged onward supply across the UK.

His right-hand-man Shahzad Hussain, of Laburnum Road in High Wycombe, controlled the 'safe house' in Wycombe complete with high-end money counting machines for their ill-gotten gains.

Hussain, who was also head of the group's heroin supply, oversaw the huge network of couriers who were dispatched on a daily basis to deliver huge quantities of cocaine an collect vast sums of money.

Edwin Kapoor, from Southall, operated as a deputy for Rao and Hussain and Hardev Thind, of Hounslow, was a trusted courier and responsible for buying the money-counting equipment.

Courier, counter, and caretaker of the cash was Azher Hussain, The Parsons in High Wycombe, had a significant role within the safe house.  He was found to have to have laundered no less than £1 million of the proceeds from the supply of Class A drugs.  

Another courier from Wycombe Raj Seechurn, of Wellesbourne Crescent, was found to be in possession of 7kg of cocaine when he was arrested on May 14, 2020, which he tried to hide in his vehicle.

Iain Harper, of Harwich, Essex, purchased kilo quantities of cocaine from the criminal network and arranged for their onwards distribution within Essex. Harper was found to have purchased at least 18 kilos from Rao’s network. 

Angela Harvey, of Gomm Place in High Wycombe, was a cash courier, conveying large sums of money between the home addresses of the organised criminal network and the safe house. She was found to have to have laundered £200,000 of the proceeds from the supply of Class A drugs.  

Each member of the group were jailed, excluding Harvey, totalling a combined sentence of more than 110 years all together.

It comes after Veshal Madlani was sentenced to five years and three months’ imprisonment on October 21 this year for his role within the criminal conspiracy. 

For the full sentence details see below.

Detective Chief Inspector Michael Hall, Head of Investigations for SEROCU, said: “The scale of the operation which led to these convictions was truly complex and demanding. Our team worked tirelessly to bring these offenders to justice, working closely with colleagues across the criminal justice system including the Crown Prosecution Service."

Investigating officer DC Dale Lester, of SEROCU, added: “This organised crime group operated at the highest level – with members involved in the supply of vast quantities of Class A drugs across the United Kingdom. 

“While many members of the group used encrypted devices to arrange their criminal exploits, believing they would not be detected, their plans to profit from others’ misery were halted by police. 

“The impact of their crime’s filters through communities up and down the country as we know the devastating impact and widespread harm of drug use and addiction can have on people.  Put simply, the actions of those who supply drugs, destroys many lives."

Anyone with information about the supply of drugs contact 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111

Individual sentences below: 

  • Sandeep Rao, 47, of Queen Street, Maidenhead, was sentenced to 24 years and two months’ imprisonment and was given a serious crime prevention order. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine, and conspiracy to possess criminal property at a previous court hearing on February 8. 
  • Shahzad Hussain, 50, of Laburnum Road, High Wycombe, was sentenced to 23 years and seven months’ imprisonment and was given a serious crime prevention order. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine, conspiring to supply a Class A drug – heroin, and conspiracy to possess criminal property at a court hearing on May 12. 
  • Edwin Kapoor, 48, of Merrick Road, Southall in Ealing, was sentenced to 18 years and 11 months’ imprisonment and was given a serious crime prevention order. He previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine, conspiring to supply a Class A drug – heroin, and conspiracy to possess criminal property at a hearing on April 9. 
  • Hardev Thind, 44, of Heston Avenue, Hounslow, was sentenced to 14 years and two months’ imprisonment. He previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine, conspiring to supply a Class A drug – MDMA, conspiring to supply a Class A drug – heroin and conspiracy to possess criminal property at a court hearing on June 3. 
  • Raj Seechurn, 41, of Wellesbourne Crescent, High Wycombe, was sentenced to seven years and six months’ imprisonment to run consecutively to the six years and six month prison sentence already imposed as part of this investigation. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine at a hearing on June 3, 2021. 
  • Azher Hussain, 53, of The Parsons, High Wycombe, was sentenced to four years and one month imprisonment. He previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess criminal property at a hearing on April 22. 
  • Iain Harper, 33, of Jubilee Close, Harwich, was sentenced to 15 years and nine months’ imprisonment. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply a Class A drug – cocaine, conspiring to supply a Class A drug – MDMA and conspiracy to possess criminal property at a hearing on June 1.  
  • Angela Harvey, 39, of Gomm Place, High Wycombe, was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years along with 120 hours community service and given a 15 month driving disqualification. She previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess criminal property at a hearing on April 25.