A dealer from London who supplied the most dangerous types of illegal drugs and recorded his own exploitation of vulnerable addicts in Hove has been jailed.
Jesutomisin Ifeoluwa, 22, of Williamson Close in Greenwich, was jailed for seven years at Lewes Crown Court on Thursday (August 19) after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of class A drugs — crack cocaine and heroin —and with the acquisition, use and possession of criminal property.
The path to conviction for Ifeoluwa began when plain clothes police officers spotted two men in Brighton city centre conducting a drug deal on February 25, 2020.
The pair were arrested and linked to an address used as a hostel for vulnerable adults and drug addicts in Seafield Road, Hove.
Officers visited the property to conduct a search and discovered Ifeoluwa in one of the bedrooms.
With him was a bag containing £970 in cash, and officers described him as "surrounded" by a number of mobile phones and items of drug paraphernalia.
At this point, he was arrested on suspicion of being concerned with the supply of Class A drugs.
Clothing identified as Ifeoluwa's was linked to CCTV footage showing him entering and leaving the Seafield Road address with the two men initially arrested for drug dealing in Brighton.
A mobile phone belonging to him was also found to contain numerous messages relating to the dealing of crack cocaine and heroin, as well as footage of him taunting and abusing vulnerable drug users.
Police said evidence pointed towards Ifeoluwa having a controlling role in the supply chain of heroin and crack and of being involved in cuckooing at the Seafield Road property.
Cuckooing is a tactic used by county lines drug dealers, whereby drug gangs from large cities such as London move into smaller cities and rural areas, using the homes of vulnerable people and drug users as a base from which to deal drugs.
The cuckooed home provides the dealer with a place to bag up drugs for onward sale, and a market of local addicts to supply with heroin and crack cocaine.
Officers charged Ifeoluwa with being concerned in the supply of class A drugs — crack cocaine and heroin — and with the acquisition, use and possession of criminal property, in relation to the cash with which he was found.
He admitted these offences in court.
Investigating officer Rose Horan said:
"Jesutomisin Ifeoluwa exploited vulnerable members of the community for his own gain and brought heroin and crack cocaine into our city with no regard for the damage these drugs cause.
"County lines drug dealing and cuckooing take advantage of the most vulnerable members of our society, invariably involving violence and exploitation, and this conviction sends a strong message that perpetrators will be punished."
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