DRUGS conspirators who lived the high life after arranging the sale of heroin and crack cocaine on the streets of Worcester are now behind bars.

London-based Nejmi Atalar and Mertcan Dereli are two of the latest scalps for Operation Blade, a police campaign to cut the supply of class A drugs to Worcester from larger cities.

Operation Blade officers, supported by Essex Police and the Metropolitan Police, swooped on the pair's London homes on July 12 last year and both were arrested. A large quantity of cash and mobile phones were recovered from Atalar's home.

A search of Atalar's home revealed that, despite being unemployed, he was living what police described as 'a cash rich style lifestyle with a large volume of expensive clothing including multiple pairs of Christian Louboutin trainers'.

Hidden within a false base of a wardrobe were two mobile phones, later confirmed to be used in the arrangement of Worcester drugs supply.

Within these phones was the 'Chef' drugs line as well as a new drugs line operating in Worcester under the title of the 'T' line.

The court heard that Dereli ‘together with Volkan Kurt and others unknown’ conspired to bring the class A drugs into the city between October 26, 2017 and July 19 last year.

Atalar, aged 25, of Crooked Mile, Waltham Abbey, Essex and Dereli, aged 22, of Commander Avenue, London, were jailed for five years each at Hereford Crown Court on January 28 by Judge Daniel Pearce-Higgins QC for conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine.

Their arrest in London was not the first time they had drawn the suspicion of Worcester police.

Both were originally arrested on November 2, 2017 following a report from a member of public who suspected they were dealing drugs from a car.

A spokesman for West Mercia Police said: "When officers located and detained the vehicle Dereli was observed to be retching as if having swallowed something."

Inside the car officers located £390 and multiple phones, one of which was later found to contain SMS contact with known class A drugs users advertising crack and heroin.

Both were released for further enquiries to take place.

On Tuesday, January 23 last year plain clothes officers were on patrol in Diglis when they noticed a large number of drug users coming and going from an alleyway running between Diglis Lane and Bath Road.

Atalar and Dereli were seen walking away from the alleyway, both wearing high visibility jackets and holding clipboards to look like workers involved in the development of the Diglis area.

The arrest of street dealer Volkan Kurt followed on March 6 last year. He was jailed for 30 months in April as the net closed on Atalar and Dereli, who were further up the chain of command.

Kurt, a 22-year-old former waiter of Mornington Close, London, turned from serving meals in London restaurants to offering up a drugs menu for his 'congregation' in Worcester.

He was arrested on the riverside at Diglis after he was seen taking part in a drugs exchange. He was found in possession of 11 street deals of heroin and crack cocaine worth £110, two phones and cash.

Phone evidence indicated that Kurt was a street dealer for the Chef drugs line. Officers discovered he had been staying at a city hotel and his room was searched with £2,017 recovered in cash and £680 worth of heroin and crack cocaine.

While at the hotel staff received calls from a male attempting to gain access to the room. This was later identified as Dereli who subsequently attended the hotel with Atalar.

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