Four men involved in a £35 million drugs operation have been jailed for a combined total of more than 70 years.
Voja Petkovic was the head of the organised crime group which was involved with the large scale supply of drugs including heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine and cannabis throughout Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire from 2017 to 2019.
The group, which was also involved with money laundering, used specially adapted vehicles with secret compartments in them to transport large quantities of drugs and cash through the country. They also used special mobile phones with military grade encryption to communicate with each other.
Petkovic was responsible for around a metric tonne of Class A drugs with a retail value of £34.8 million flooding the streets of Derby and Nottingham.
A number of other people were also involved in the operation, selling the drugs on Petkovic’s behalf.
Ivan Graham was one of Petkovic’s most trusted accomplices. Graham, who was jailed for 24 years in 2018 for his part in the operation, helped to move the drugs through a property in Wakami Crescent, Chellaston. The Wakami Crescent house was sub-let to Graham by Glynn Oxtoby, who was hired to rent the address in his name and pay all the bills, in a bid to hide who was actually using it.
The drugs arrived at the house in raw form, and after being cut and repackaged, were then supplied to other dealers for sale.
When officers searched the property in May 2018, they found an industrial scale operation of wholesale drugs supply and production. Hundreds of thousands of pounds of cash and a number of weapons including handguns and an Uzi sub machine gun were also found.
Among the dealers who would then sell on the drugs were Micah Prince and Calvin Morgan.
Both were seen regularly meeting with those involved in the operation and exchanging packages of both cash and drugs.
An investigation by the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) uncovered the group’s activities and led to the arrests of Petkovic, Oxtoby, Morgan and Prince.
All were subsequently charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine. Petkovic and Prince were also charged with money laundering.
They denied the charges but were found guilty in March after a trial held at Loughborough Crown Court. They returned to the same court for sentencing on 16 May when they were handed jail sentences:
- Voja Petkovic, 40, of Whinbush Avenue, Derby – jailed for 29 years
- Micah Prince, 42, of Wenlock Drive, Hucknall – jailed for 20 years
- Calvin Morgan, 32, of Strathmore Avenue, Derby – jailed for 18 years in total, including five years for a firearms offence committed while on bail
- Glynn Oxtoby, 38, of Victory Road, Derby – jailed for 6 years
Detective Chief Inspector Darren Brown, from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit, EMSOU, said: “This has been a long running and complex case into a multi-million pound drugs operation throughout Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
“This group were responsible for supplying an enormous amount of Class A drugs over the course of two years, using specially adapted technology and vehicles to help with their operation.
“I have no doubt that they would have continued this illegal trade had they not been stopped and brought to justice thanks to the efforts of a team of highly dedicated and hard-working officers at EMSOU.
“These convictions, which followed one of the longest running criminal trials in history, mean huge amounts of illegal drugs have now been taken off the streets and those responsible are behind bars for some considerable time.
“I hope this serves as a warning to anyone involved in the supply and distribution of illegal drugs that we will uncover your operations and do all we can to ensure you face justice for your crimes.”
