West Midlands drug dealer jailed after making half a million pounds selling cocaine in the region

Sikander Ali was jailed at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday after admitting to supplying at least 14kg of cocaine to buyers in the West Midlands.

Sikander, who was noted as being a wholesale purchaser of the drug, was arrested after officers infiltrated the notorious Encrochat encrypted mobile phone network, discovering his dealings.

Going by the name Buckglove, Ali from Measham Grove, Yardley, in Birmingham, would purchase the drug in large quantities, before breaking it down and selling it to other dealers in the West Midlands area.

An examination of Ali's messages on the system described him at one point having 10kg available, boasting about the quality of the drug, saying "U won't have any complaints, It's proper."

The messages came to light following the infiltration of Encrochat, which had over 60,000 users worldwide, by international law enforcement teams in 2020, exposing a huge number of criminals and criminal conspiracies, including the trade of illegal goods, laundering of money and arranged killings.

Images showed Ali flaunting his wealth online, posing with an expensive Patek Philippe watch and a Mercedes G-Class SUV.

Following his arrest, Ali admitted to supplying 14kg of cocaine to buyers, with each block worth between £37,000 and £40,000, with a total street value of £560,000.

Ali also admitted to borrowing a .38 calibre handgun from another Encrochat user for his own protection, at one point driving around Birmingham carrying the firearm.

Messages between himself and the owner of the gun also show that Ali had tried to purchase the weapon, to which the owner declined, saying "Bro if it was that easy I wouldn't ask you for it back It's not like there 38s [.38 calibre] all around the place like sweet shop."

Ali's name came to police attention while detectives investigated another criminal gang who were plotting for a man to be show dead in Birmingham.

Ali was arrested as he tried to fly to Dubai from Birmingham Airport in January last year, and went on to admit to supplying cocaine and transferring a firearm.

At the court, he was jailed for nine years and six months for the drugs offences, and another four years, to be served consecutively, for the firearm offences.

Detective Inspector Matt Marston, from the West Midlands Police major crimes unit, said: "Like a large number of other criminals around the world, Ali thought that using Encrochat meant he could operate above the law. Like so many others, he was wrong.

"His messages revealed a criminal operation, spreading misery through the buying and selling of Class A drugs.

"Ali is clearly someone who had no qualms about borrowing and carrying a deadly firearm to protect him from others in the criminal underworld."