Newcastle and Gateshead drug courier and dealers jailed for more than combined 15 years

A cocaine courier and a cannabis dealer who supplied £189,000 worth of drugs to an organised crime group have been jailed for more than 15 years.

Gentjan Kaloti and William Hunter appeared at Newcastle Crown Court on Friday, October 2 where they were sentenced for their roles in the same conspiracy which saw cocaine dealer David Borley put behind bars for almost 20 years earlier this month.

The men’s illegal activity was initially captured as part of a specialist operation which saw law enforcement infiltrate encrypted devices and uncover evidence of large-scale drug supply across the North East.

When officers from Northumbria Police began compiling a case against Borley and his associates in Spring 2020, they uncovered messages sent from Kaloti’s encrypted device, referring to himself as ‘Alboss’ – the head of an Albanian crime group.

The investigation swiftly mapped a network of couriers, including Hunter, who was found to have provided essential transport which delivered multi -kilo shipments of cocaine and stored £20,000 cash at his home.

Officers also established Kaloti had helped supply Borley’s associates with 45kgs of cannabis.

As police efforts ramped up, £169,000 in cash was recovered following searches of an address on Kitchener Street, Gateshead, as well as a number of vehicles destined for the West Midlands. Messages would later reveal that Kaloti had co-ordinated the operation and knew of the police strike.

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Kaloti and Hunter were later arrested and charged, and both appeared at Newcastle Crown Court where they both pleaded guilty to drugs offences.

On Friday, the men were sentenced as follows:

• Kaloti, 44, of Brettanby Road in Felling, previously admitted conspiring to supply Cannabis and was sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
• William Hunter, 52, of Westgate Road, Newcastle, previously admitted to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and was sentenced to eight years and one month imprisonment.

The sentencing brings the overall total to more than 34 years of jail time.

Speaking afterwards, Detective Chief Inspector Marc Michael of Northumbria Police’s Crime Department said: “Organised crime affects our communities in many ways and none of them are for the better. It is only right we keep bringing people like Kaloti and Wood before the courts and I am pleased with today’s sentences.

“We know that illegal drugs can harm people in a number of different ways, and the groups who sell them can bring violence, antisocial behaviour, and other types of criminality into our neighbourhoods which is why we are determined to put an end to it.

“Cannabis farms are hazardous and put people at risk with their bypassed electricity and chemical storage, not to mention the wider associated criminality of exploitation and slavery which goes on behind the scenes.

“As part of Operation Sentinel, we will continue our clampdown on organised crime and ask our communities to work with us by reporting suspicious activity to us and sharing their concerns.”