He told investigators that he was a male escort and ended up getting 21 years
But in fact, Kulvir Shergill headed up an organised crime group (OCG that imported millions of pounds of cocaine into the United Kingdom.
Around 250kg of the Class A drug was imported into the country between February 26 and April 24 in 2020.
READ MORE: Gangsters who used drill rap videos to lure children into drug dealing network jailed
Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp, click the link to join
That had a whopping street value of £20 million.
Using the now-defunct encrypted communications platform EncroChat, Shergill and other OCG members would arrange deals.
Shergill used the handle 'orderlyswarmer' and liaised with contacts in Netherlands to find out when delivering would be coming over.
Then Shergill would distribute them to other OCGs around the country.
But his downfall came when he and his other accomplices were arrested in 2020.
Shergill denied smuggling Class A drugs but eventually admitted the offence.
On 20 September last year, the 43-year-old, of Bhullar Way in Oldbury, was jailed for 21 years at Birmingham Crown Court.
Meanwhile, on Thursday afternoon (June 5), the final member of the OCG was jailed for the same offences.
Jagdeep Singh, aged 43, of Bloomfield Road, Tipton, worked as an electrician by trade.
He was tasked with taking receipt of drugs deliveries and acted as a warehouseman.
During his arrest on April 23, 2020, he had 30kg worth of high purity cocaine in his possession.
Singh is now behind bars, serving a six year and eight month sentence.
Elsewhere, three other members of the OCG were sent to locked up in September.
Shergill's second-in-command was Khurram Mohammed, aged 37, of Barker Street, Oldbury, who was a trusted worker.
He was jailed for 14 years and four months.
While Shakfat Ali, aged 38, travelled around the UK on the OCG's behalf and is believed to have delivered drugs.
Ali, from Oldbury, was jailed for 16 years and nine months.
While Mohammed Sajad, 44, of Norton Crescent, Birmingham, who was a trusted member of the group, was jailed for 16 years.
He was already serving a seven-year sentence before these offences after West Midlands Police found six firearms, a large amount of ammunition and a quantity of Class A drugs at his house in May 2020.
Rick Mackenzie, NCA operations manager, said: "These offenders formed a significant crime group in the West Midlands and had far-reaching contacts to help them peddle drugs all around the UK.
"Shergill and his accomplices are directly responsible for the horrendous consequences Class A drugs have among our communities.
"The NCA and partners at home and abroad will continue to fight the threat of illegal drugs.
"Proceeds of crime proceedings have been started and all identified assets owned by the defendants have been frozen and are currently under restraint.
"The NCA will work with our partners at the CPS to ensure that any money made from their drug enterprise is recovered."
The NCA lead Operation Venetic, the UK response to the takedown of EncroChat.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Switzerland is considering joining 'dirty money' task force, UK official says
By Sam Tabahriti LONDON (Reuters) -Switzerland is considering joining a British-led international task force targeting kleptocrats and recovering stolen assets, a British government official said, as it seeks to shake off its reputation as a haven for dirty money. Foreign minister David Lammy discussed the International Anti-Corruption Coordination (IACCC) with the Swiss government during a visit to the country earlier this month, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The Swiss government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Joining the task force would allow Swiss authorities to share intelligence and work more closely with other countries on major investigations targeting dirty money. Lammy told Reuters that Switzerland is "a key partner in the fight against illicit finance and corruption" and its participation in the IACCC would be "invaluable". Switzerland, the world's largest manager of offshore wealth, has tried to shed its image as a safe haven for illicit funds and has recently taken steps to improve transparency, including proposing stricter rules on beneficial ownership. The IACCC task force was launched in 2017 and is hosted by Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA). It brings together enforcement bodies from countries including the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to share intelligence and coordinate investigations. Since it was founded, it has identified 1.8 billion pounds in suspected stolen funds, and frozen 641 million pounds of assets, the IACCC says. Britain has ramped up its efforts to tackle illicit finance since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It has positioned itself as a leader in the global fight against kleptocracy, but it still faces its own challenges on that front. The NCA estimates that over 100 billion pounds ($135.32 billion) is laundered through or within the UK each year, often via British-registered corporate structures. ($1 = 0.7390 pounds)
New York Post
4 days ago
- New York Post
American caught smuggling $1M of crack in giant wheel of Parmesan
Oh, wheely? A California woman tried to smuggle more than $1 million of crack cocaine in a gigantic wheel of Parmesan cheese into the UK, according to reports. Jamie Choi, 23, aroused the suspicions of UK Border Force agents when she arrived at Heathrow Airport on a flight from Brazil on May 25 with a 17-pound wheel of Peruvian Parmesan, the Evening Standard reported. Advertisement The crack stashed inside the cheese wheel was 94% pure, according to a forensic analysis, authorities said. Jamie Choi, 23, of California was sentenced to more than five years in jail on smuggling charges in the United Kingdom. NCA Choi was toting around a 17-pound cheese wheel that contained 94% pure crack cocaine. NCA Advertisement 'We've seen people trying to smuggle cocaine into the UK hidden inside all manner of innocuous-looking items, but Border Force and the National Crime Agency are well-practised in finding drugs, whatever the disguise,' NCA senior officer Barry Vinall, told the outlet. In the days before she arrived at Heathrow, Choi traveled from LA to Lima, Peru, then to Asuncion, Paraguay, then Sao Paulo, Brazil, officials said. A notebook found in Choi's bag contained a single handwritten note dated May 21. 'I dropped out of [University of California Santa Barbara] on Monday,' she wrote in the note. Advertisement 'Currently I am in Paraguay in South America solo travelling for the first time. It's been amazing so far.' Choi pled guilty Aug 6 to charges of importing Class A drugs and was sentenced to five years and three months in prison.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
BREAKING: Children's homes where kids went 'missing overnight' shut down after sex attack claim
The private company behind five children's homes that were placed in special measures amid shocking failures has announced they have been permanently closed down. The conditions at three of the five homes operated by Dimensions Care Ltd were exposed by BirminghamLive after Ofsted inspectors made appalling discoveries during visits, including a child who went missing and later reported being sexually assaulted and possibly drugged by men in a hotel room. In a statement today the firm announced the small, family-style homes were to permanently close with immediate effect. READ MORE: Exposed - chaotic private children's homes where kids 'go missing overnight' and 'exploited' The homes were located across the region including three in Sandwell, Coventry and Telford that were all judged inadequate during recent inspections. Among their findings the inspectors interviewed one child at the home in Coventry who went missing all night and was 'drugged and sexually assaulted' by adult men. The aftercare and support they received was described as 'poor'. At a second home run by the same company, another child with a well known interest in knives and gangs and deemed 'at risk' was taken by home staff to meet up with dubious 'friends' on numerous occasions, ending up involved in crime, Ofsted inspectors found. And in yet another shocking incident, a child disappeared in the night 'for several hours' and staff did not realise until the child told them the next day. READ MORE: 'On the floor now' - watch police stop knife suspects in dramatic Birmingham city centre scenes The conditions experienced were exposed following Ofsted inspections in May and June. Among the councils contracting the homes to look after vulnerable children were Birmingham City Council and Coventry City Council. Other failings included: * There was no evidence at one home that 'children even lived there'. "There are no toys, games, photos or their belongings on display." * Police were called by staff after two children 'broke in' to their own kitchen in the night because it was kept locked to prevent them getting food. * A child who had moved in four weeks earlier had not unpacked the few belongings they arrived with, while their 'precious possessions' had still not been collected from their previous home. * One teenager, in the middle of GCSEs, was allowed to stay in bed all day despite having an exam. "There was no support, encouragement or routine in place." A later inspection at a third home, in Telford, also found shocking failures. Inspectors said: 'Weak leadership and management of the home means that children are not safe. There are immediate risks to the safety and well-being of the children living at the home.' They found kids were moved in without 'considering how children who already live at the home can live safely with new children who move in. As a result, some children have faced unplanned moves out of the house and significant police involvement.' They found: 'Serious incidents have resulted in harm to some children.' Two children left the home at night 'to meet with unknown males which put them at significant risk of harm.' Staff supported the children to return home safely 'but support for the children following this incident was poor. Staff did not act to reduce risk for these children.' They also found 'four children have experienced frequent and serious episodes of going missing from the home, during which they have been at significant risk of harm.' A fourth home also received a critical report. All were downgraded to inadequate. READ MORE: Heartbreaking tributes as much loved Moseley campaigner and city councillor dies READ MORE: Big fall in number of dead and injured on region's roads after speeding crackdown In a statement today the firm said: "It is with much regret that Dimensions Care has decided to permanently close its five care homes and has applied to Ofsted to voluntarily cancel its registration as a provider of social care. "We are working with local authorities to find alternative places of care for four children from across three of our homes. Children from our other two homes have already been placed with alternative registered providers of care. "These decisions have been extremely difficult to make, and they are outcomes that we've worked hard to avoid. Disappointingly and sadly for everyone involved, there was a decline in our previous 'Good', Ofsted-graded standards, which should not have happened. "Having completed an internal investigation and after continuing to collaborate with Ofsted, we determined that the permanent closure of our homes and our voluntary deregistration is the most appropriate way forward. "We remain grateful for the ongoing commitment, hard work and understanding of our frontline staff, and are working closely with them on next steps." Dimensions Care Ltd is a relatively small, £1m a year turnover company, with five premises. Its owners include directors of a much bigger company, Tristone Group, previously Tristone Capital, which recorded revenue of £26.5 million for the year ending March 2024, and reported an operating profit of £2.4 million, which was 60% up on the year before. Most of its revenue is from providing specialist adult and child residential care.
