Drug dealers who exploited vulnerable teenage boys to sell drugs on their behalf to maximise profits have been jailed for drug and modern slavery offences.
The victims would spend most of their days and night in secluded wooded areas, under makeshift tents selling crack cocaine and heroin.
Cameron Farrah (25) and Tyrese Jones (23) from Cardiff were arrested as part of a proactive police operation into the “CC” drugs line which was operating across Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan.
Three other people – Chakeel Lovell, 23, from Penylan, Joshua Dunbar, 28, from Pentyrch, and Taylor Penny Soraya Williams, 25, from Ely – were also arrested for their roles in the county line.
The CC drugs line was a busy well-established drugs line that had been operating for several years in the Cardiff area.
Victims forced to work
The police investigation revealed the shocking conditions under which the four victims had been forced to work between November 2023 and January 2024.
Senior Investigating Officer Detective Inspector Tim Jones said: “The victims were sat on old, discarded furniture in wooded locations away from the public, into the night, under makeshift tents, surrounded by machetes, carrying knives, and being paid minimally for their time selling these deadly drugs.
“Exploiting vulnerable children in this way is despicable. Exploitation and slavery have no place in our South Wales communities, and we will do all we can to arrest those involved.”
This is the first case of its kind in Cardiff where a county line has been prosecuted for modern slavery offences alongside drug trafficking charges without the need for any victims to provide evidence supporting the prosecution.
Arrests made
Dunbar, Farrah, and Lovell were arrested in Highbury Road, Ely, Cardiff, on March 13, 2024.
During the arrests, two kilos of heroin were seized.
Jones was arrested two weeks later at his home address, and Williams was arrested on April 18, 2024.
Court sentences
All five appeared at Newport Crown Court on Tuesday, 18th March, and were sentenced as follows:
- Cameron Farrah, 25, from Ely, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply Class-A drugs, possession with intent to supply Class-A drugs, and two counts of trafficking a child. Sentenced to 8 years and 9 months.
- Tyrese Jones, 23, from Ely, pleaded guilty two counts of conspiracy to supply Class-A drugs, possession with intent to supply Class-A drugs, and trafficking a child. Sentenced to 8 years and 9 months.
- Chakeel Lovell, 23, from Penylan, pleaded guilty to two counts conspiracy to supply Class-A drugs and possession with intent to supply Class-A drugs. Sentenced to 6 years and 4 months.
- Joshua Dunbar, 28, from Pentyrch, pleaded guilty to concealing criminal property, namely £104,000 worth of cash and cryptocurrency. Sentenced to 25 months.
- Taylor Williams, 25, from Ely, pleaded guilty to participating in the activities of an organised crime group. Sentenced to a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 120 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation requirement.
DI Jones added: “South Wales Police is committed to identifying and safeguarding any young or vulnerable people in the community that are being exploited by Organised Crime Groups such as this one.
“We will look to place orders such as Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Orders upon conviction on any offenders involved in this type of criminality.”
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