Drug dealer Melvin Gambanga, 23, has been jailed for flushing £8,000 worth of crack cocaine down his toilet when police raided his home in Gravesend, Kent
A county lines kingpin has been jailed for eight years after throwing £8,000 worth of crack cocaine down his toilet when police raided his home.
Drug dealer Melvin Gambanga, 23, tried to get rid of his stash as the cops broke down the door of his Kent base in Gravesend.
When officers searched his flat they also found a loaded pistol and ammunition hidden in a holdall with more bullets in a suit in the wardrobe.
Video footage of the raid showed officers smashing down his front door, then pulling a plastic bag of drugs out of his toilet.
The unemployed warehouse worker was jailed for a total of eight years.
A series of phones found at Gambanga’s home revealed he was marketing the drugs by sending out regular adverts, a court heard.
One of the adverts read: ‘We are back…back with the best’.
When officers forced their way into his flat they found him inside an en-suite having just flushed crack cocaine with a street value of up to £8,000 down the toilet, police said.
Video footage of the raid showed officers smashing down his front door, then pulling a plastic bag of drugs out of this toilet
When officers searched his flat they also found a loaded pistol and ammunition hidden in a holdall with more bullets in a suit in the wardrobe
Heroin and crack cocaine, which had been assembled into ready to sell wraps, was also discovered in his bedroom.
Gambanga was part of a county lines drugs gang known as ‘G’, the court was told.
County lines dealing refers to the practice of city-based gangs pushing narcotics – typically crack cocaine and heroin – in commuter towns.
At Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday, Gambanga admitted possessing class A drugs with intent, possessing a prohibited firearm and ammunition and having £1,000 in cash – the proceeds of his drug deals.
Mark Gadsden, prosecuting, said: ‘He was responsible for a significant amount of drugs being brought into Gravesend and other parts of the south east.’
Mr Gadsden added that the self-loading 9mm pistol that was found in the flat contained four rounds with four more found in his suit, which was hanging in a wardrobe.
When officers forced their way into his flat they found him inside an en-suite having just flushed crack cocaine with a street value of up to £8,000 down the toilet
The dealer – who has a previous drugs conviction from 2016 – had been peddling drugs in the Kent town from October 2019 until his arrest in May this year.
Max Reeves, defending, said Gambanga claimed the weapon had been given to him by someone ‘further up the chain of command’ and he had never inspected or fired it.
Jailing him for five years on the weapon charges and another three years for the drugs offence, Judge Stephen Thomas told him: ‘You were heavily involved in the marketing of class A drugs.’
Det Con Mark Donovan, investigating officer for Kent Police, said Gambanga, who lived in Abbey Wood, south east London, was ‘a threat to public safety’.
A series of phones found at Gambanga’s home revealed he was marketing the drugs by sending out regular adverts
He said: ‘Gambanga has demonstrated he is an individual who presents a clear threat to public safety.
‘Not only does he see people suffering from drug abuse as a means to make money, his willingness to possess a loaded gun demonstrates he was willing to commit acts of serious violence.
‘Despite being based outside of Kent, he was not able to escape capture after our enquiries revealed he had been actively involved in co-ordinating the supply of drugs to Gravesend.
‘Each day we are gathering new information on the supply of class A drugs in our town and, as this case shows, we will not hesitate to come after drug dealers at their own homes to ensure they are brought to justice.’