Cocaine dealer latest to be rumbled by Salford's anti-gang cops

A cocaine dealer from Weaste has been jailed after our anti-gang cops in Salford caught him in a car with ketamine, before we went on to uncover the raft of class A, B, and C drugs he intended to sell.

Luke Oliver (28) became the latest to be rumbled by officers from our Operation Naseby disruption taskforce that has helped drive down shootings in the city by over 70% since its inception two years ago after 300 arrests, over 300 car seizures, nearly 130 house searches, and around 50kilos of drugs recovered.

Manchester Crown Court heard how Oliver was spotted by our patrols in Weaste in April in a vehicle linked to a cannabis dealer who the Op Naseby team had recently helped to jail.

Officers stopped the black Volkswagen Golf and spotted cash and observed that Oliver – the sole occupant of the car – appeared nervous and looked as though he had taken drugs.

During a subsequent search of the vehicle – under section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act – we found five snap bags of white powder that Oliver said was ketamine, as well as three mobile phones.

An apartment linked to Oliver in the Exchange area of the city uncovered nearly £2500 of cash and a plethora of drugs worth an estimated total of around £18,600; including 25 grams of cocaine, 287 grams of ketamine, and 123 grams of cannabis as well as MDMA, LSD, and diazepam.

Oliver, of Whiteside Close, was taken to custody later that day and answered ‘no comment’ to all questions posed to him.

He was charged and convicted of possession with intent to possession of class A, B, and C drugs with intent to supply, and yesterday (Tuesday 7 June) was sentenced to two years and 10 months imprisonment.

It is the latest case that has seen our Op Naseby officers bring to justice organised criminals who have been sentenced to almost 70 years’ worth of custodial sentences, with many others being recalled to prison or receiving criminal behaviour orders requiring them to continue abiding by strict conditions following their release from custody.

Our commitment to maintaining the crackdown on weapons, criminals, drugs and their assets is hoped will continue to drive down violent crime on our streets even further as our work sustains without relent.

We've been able to conduct well over 100 house searches in the last year thanks to intelligence we have received from the public, and we continue to urge anyone with information or concerns to contact us online via LiveChat, if able, or by calling 101.

Details can be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.