A Stevenage man is one of five members of a gang who have been jailed for a combined total of nearly 50 years, after importing and supplying nearly £1m worth of cocaine.

The group was also convicted of supplying almost £1million worth of MDMA, and possession of a firearm, following an investigation by the Organised Crime Partnership (OCP).

Damian Masalski, 25, from Stevenage, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supplying class A and B drugs and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

On January 15 last year, Stevenage's Damian Masalski met Roman Lada, 53, from Poland, at the Birchanger Services in Bishop’s Stratford.

Officers from the OCP - a joint National Crime Agency and Met Police Service unit - watched Masalski pass money to Lada, who then stashed it in his HGV lorry.

The next day Lada tried to leave the UK but was stopped by Border Force officers at Dover. They searched Lada’s HGV and found close to half a million pounds hidden in the cabin.

Two weeks later on January 30, 2020, Masalski and Tomasz Dimitruk-Kot, 25, met Damian Mysliwiec, 36, in Stevenage.

OCP officers witnessed the men exchanging plastic bags, and moved in to intervene, seizing 12 kilos of cocaine worth £960,000 if sold at street level, as well as £85,000 in cash.

A search of Masalski’s address in Stevenage uncovered a further £134,450 in cash, plus 24 kilos of high quality MDMA worth £962,000. The search also uncovered written notes referencing the supply of a further 67 kilos of cocaine, potentially worth £5.3 million.

On February 14, 2020, OCP and armed NCA officers stopped Adam Anchim, 36, on Fountains Road, Luton, after investigators identified him as a criminal associate of Masalski.

Officers searched Anchim’s vehicle and recovered a handgun, 24 rounds of ammunition, 220 MDMA tablets and 126 grams of cocaine. A search of Anchim’s address uncovered 1kg of cannabis and 423 grams of amphetamine, plus £26,233 and €4,801 in cash.

The OCP investigation found that Masalski, Lada, Dmitruk-Kot and Mysliwiec had been working together to arrange for the importation of cocaine into the UK, and that Anchim was criminally linked to Masalski.

Last month, Lada was found guilty of attempting to remove criminal property. He was sentenced to three years and four months in jail.

The other men were sentenced at Luton Crown Court on Monday.

Masalski was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Dmitruk-Kot pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine, and received twelve years six months in prison. Mysliwiec admitted the same offence, plus involvement in other offences within the conspiracy period, and was sentenced to eight years and seven months.

Anchim pleaded guilty to possession of a Section 5 Firearm and possession with intent to supply class A drugs and was sentenced to seven and a half years.

The combined sentence for all five men is 49 years 11 months.

Detective Inspector Richard Smith from the Organised Crime Partnership said: “These five men were involved in a significant criminal operation that brought class A drugs into our country for profit. The additional element of Anchim’s firearm makes their plot even more dangerous.

“Drugs, cash and violence all go hand-in-hand. The NCA and Met will continue to work together to stop organised criminals profiting on the importation and supply of drugs, which in turn will help reduce violent crime across London and the rest of the UK.”