A man arrested for drug dealing in Middlesex Street has been jailed at the Old Bailey.
Sam Montague, 33, of Bower Lane, Basildon, Essex, was slapped with a lengthy prison sentence after being caught in possession of 21 wraps of cocaine in July.
His arrest took place during a pre-planned operation co-ordinated by the City of London Police communities and partnerships team, with Montague among the key suspects in a drug supply ring that had long afflicted the area around Middlesex Street.
Building on concerns raised by the local community, the activity involved the City Police roads policing unit, support group, dog unit, major investigation team, and scientific support unit among others.
Officers pulled Montague (left) into Bishopsgate police station after witnessing a drug deal between himself on a black Aprilia moped and a pedestrian.
Upon search police found three bags of cocaine in his coat pocket, and a further 18 bags in his satchel bag along with an unknown quantity of cash.
At court, Montague was ordered to serve two years and eight months in custody for possession with intent to supply a class A drug, and an additional 12-month sentence for supplying the same substance, to run concurrently.
Sergeant Pete Lucas said: “This operation was a resounding success, and as a result of co-ordinating the expertise and resources of several different City of London Police units we were able to successfully make multiple arrests.
“This is a perfect example of using intelligent, creative, problem-solving methods to respond to concerns from the public, who were worried about criminal activity in their local area and rightly raised the issues with the police. We’d encourage anyone else to do the same.
“We hope this sentence, and this operation, makes it clear that we do not tolerate drug dealing within the Square Mile, and will use everything at our disposal – including our relationship with the local community – to bring offenders to justice.”
