Cocaine and heroin dealers locked up after Southend drugs gang brought down

L to R (top clockwise): Jonathan Adebisi, Claud Osbourne, Darian Clarke, Abdel Toure
-Credit: (Image: Essex Police)


A gang supplying crack cocaine and heroin in Southend has been brought down with members locked up for more than 14 years. Detectives have been investigating the 'William' and 'Dexter' lines county lines gangs since 2023.

Five drug dealers associated with the lines have now been put behind bars. The ‘William’ line operated from July 2023, supplying crack cocaine and heroin to Class A drug users in Southend whilst the 'Dexter' line supplied drugs to the city from November 2023.

It stretched from London to Bristol and Birmingham as Class A drugs were allowed to flow onto the streets of Southend. Abdel Toure, 31, was identified as the line's ringleader.

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Investigating officers analysed bulk advertising messages sent out to drug users and linked Toure, Claud Osbourne, 33, and Telmo Cangoma, 21, to the drug line.

Officers raided a home in Broadway, Leigh, on October 12 last year and arrested Cangoma. That same day officers were in Baxter Avenue, Southend, when they spotted Toure and Osbourne.

'Members of public helped police investigation'

Toure noticed the officers and immediately fled on foot. During the resultant chase, Toure was seen to throw items over a garden fence. Officers caught up with him and arrested him.

A helpful member of the public approached the officers and told them a phone had been thrown into her garden. Despite his lack of honest employment, upon Toure’s arrest he was also found to be carrying £585 in cash.

Osbourne initially stopped for officers but then began to flee police, running in the opposite direction to Toure. He was later detained in Guilford Road and, again, a member of the public helped officers by telling them they had witnessed him throw something into a nearby garden.

The men were stopped by police in Southend. File image
The men were stopped by police in Southend. File image -Credit:Essex Police

Officers searched the area and found a discarded phone which had previously been used by the ‘William’ drug line. Osbourne was found to be carrying a packet of cocaine.

Toure, Osbourne and Cangoma were charged with and later admitted being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin. Osbourne, of Southchurch Avenue, Southend, was jailed for two years and eight months at Basildon Crown Court in March this year.

Cangoma, of Broadway, Leigh, appeared at the same court earlier this month, where he was sentenced to 20 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months. The sentence came with conditions attached to complete 80 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation activity requirement.

Toure, of no fixed address, was jailed for five years and eight months at the same court on Wednesday 23 October.

Drug dealers thought they could escape police - but they were wrong

The ‘Dexter’ line was identified as supplying Class A drugs in Southend from around November 2023. In January 2024, a runner for the line was stopped mid-drug deal and arrested.

He was found to be carrying a number of wraps of crack cocaine and heroin which was contaminated with a dangerous synthetic opioid. Essex Police's 'Op Raptor' continued to build a case against those involved, establishing evidence against key members Darian Clarke, 30, and 26-year-old Johnathan Adebisi.

Adebisi, of no fixed address, was arrested in Chelmsford in August this year, while Clarke, of London Road, Westcliff, handed himself in at Southend police station the following month. Both admitted being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin and appeared for sentence at Basildon Crown Court on Wednesday (October 23).

Basildon Crown Court in Basildon, Essex.
Basildon Crown Court in Basildon, Essex.

Adebisi was jailed for four years, while Clarke was jailed for three years and two months. Chief Inspector Dave Browning, Southend district commander, described the drugs trade as "vile" and one that "brings violence and disorder".

They added: "We rely on the reports we receive from the honest and law-abiding community in Southend to tackle these drug lines and end their vile trade. I would thank those members of the public who assisted officers while they made key arrests in one of these cases.

"Both Toure and Osbourne thought they could flee, but were swiftly proven wrong. The sale of crack cocaine and heroin in Southend brings wider violence and disorder and we’re committed to stamping out the criminals fuelling this supply.

"There is a very real danger in taking drugs. One of these cases proves users can never be sure of what they are taking. Heroin is an inherently dangerous substance and the emergence of synthetic opioids as a national issue is only making this drug more deadly.

"Not only are we securing arrests and charges against those involved in these county lines, but we are seizing and removing harmful substances from circulation. These cases are just two examples of our ongoing work to disrupt county lines activity in the south of Essex."