Drug dealer jailed after £3m of drugs discovered in vehicle stop on M25

A drug dealer has been jailed after police discovered £3m worth of cocaine in the boot of his car during a routine motorway stop.

Sam Migliorini, 32, was stopped on the M25 in October this year by Metropolitan Police officers carrying out a proactive search operation.

In the boot of Migliorini’s Smart car they found a black holdall that contained 30 1kg blocks of cocaine.

The blocks were labelled “C.E.N.G – Cartel Ecuador Nueva Generacion”, the name of a notorious Mexican drug syndicate, and had an estimated street value of around £3m.

Migliorini, of Barking, Essex, was arrested and later pleaded guilty to possession of a Class A drug (cocaine) with intent to supply, and possession of criminal property.

He was sentenced to eight years and three months in prison at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Wednesday.

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The Smart car was taken to a secure location where it could be thoroughly searched, and officers found the vehicle contained a sophisticated hide that ran the width of the car underneath the front passenger seat and driver's seat.

The hide was operated via a magnet being placed on the centre console below the gearstick. This then lifted up the front passenger seat to reveal the hide, which was empty.

An encrypted mobile phone was also found inside the vehicle.

Following a search of one of Migliorini’s other vehicles, officers also found £15,000 in cash.

Detective Sergeant Gemma Brown, from the Specialist Crime Command, said: “This was a significant seizure of Class A drugs and this a great example of how officers are tirelessly working to disrupt the supply of drugs.

“The people who are involved in the supply of drugs clearly have very little regard for the chaos of violence that comes with it. Seizures such as this stop drugs reaching the streets of London, where they have the potential to cause great harm to people and communities.

“Criminals who think they can use things such as hides and encrypted devices to evade capture are wrong – you will be caught and brought to justice.”

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