Drug Dealer Reports Missing Drugs to the Police and Takes Down Drug Ring

 NEWPORT, Wales (WKRC) - A drug dealer lost a bag full of drugs on a train, reported it missing, and accidentally toppled a criminal organization once it was found.

The British Transport Police (BTP) said their investigation began in November of 2019 when they found a bag containing "a hefty amount of ketamine" that had been left behind on a passenger train at the Newport train station. The contents of the bag were worth between $25,000 and $50,000, according to police.

Police did not have to search very far for the bag's owner, since 30-year-old Jordan McCourt-Knight had already reported the bag missing to train station employees.

Officers quickly arrested McCourt-Knight and found him holding "a small quantity" of multiple drugs, over $2,400, drug paraphernalia, and an "Encro device" phone which costs thousands of dollars.

The "Encro device" or "EncroPhone" is a phone that boasts high-end security and encryption capabilities at a premium price, and it was the smoking gun that led the BTP to McCourt-Knight's employer.

"McCourt-Knight and other members of the organized crime group had used the 'Encro-Chat' app to discuss the sourcing, supply, and receipt of drugs from Portugal," according to a release from the BTP.

The BTP was able to use the texts to trace Hall to his home, where they found thousands of dollars in cash and over two pounds of marijuana.

"McCourt-Knight and Hall were in direct communication with international drug suppliers, sourcing numerous class A, B, and C drugs which were then supplied throughout various parts of the UK," said Detective Sergeant Dan Murdoch.

"McCourt-Knight boasted about his use of his Encro-Device which was used along with his mobile phone to source and distribute the drugs," he continued. "But his boastfulness was short lived, as, through one careless mistake, McCourt – Knight single handedly helped bring down the drugs ring, unwittingly aiding detectives in unravelling the entire enterprise."

McCourt-Knight pled guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply a class A drug (cocaine and MDMA), and five counts of conspiracy to supply a class B drug (ketamine and cannabis). He was sentenced to six years and three months in prison.

28-year-old Harley Hall pled guilty to two counts of conspiracy to supply a class A drug (cocaine and MDMA), three counts of conspiracy to supply a class B drug (ketamine and cannabis), and one count of possession with intent to supply cannabis. He was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison.

by WKRC