A drug dealer who sold heroin and crack cocaine in Canterbury has become the latest offender jailed following work by Kent Police’s County Lines and Gangs Team.
Blessed Sithole was arrested after proactive work by the team identified a hire car linked to drug dealing in the city in April 2022.
The 29-year-old, of Gore Mews, was later arrested and charged with being concerned in the supply of class A drugs.
After admitting that charge, he was sentenced to three years when he appeared before Canterbury Crown Court on Wednesday 2nd November 2022.
Officers identified a blue BMW which they believed was being used by a county line network who advertised their drugs using the text name ‘Taylor’.
Further investigation linked Sithole to the car and a warrant was carried out at his home on 26th April 2022. He was arrested in the city on the same day.
The number of arrests show our relentless work to shut down the networks which target vulnerable people in the county
A large amount of cash and two phones, were seized. Examination of the phones later revealed messages offering drug users ‘best of both’, a reference to heroin and crack cocaine.
While on bail, Sithole obtained another hire car and another phone, with a view to potential further dealing. He was arrested again in June and charged.
Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Talboys said ‘This proactive investigation shows how my officers seek out and arrest those who try to sell class A drugs on the streets of Kent’.
