County Lines drug gang leader jailed after skilful work by digital detectives

The leader of a County Lines drug gang has been locked up after skilful work by detectives who used a range of digital forensic techniques linking him to a conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

County Lines is a term used to describe urban gangs supplying drugs to other parts of the UK using dedicated mobile phone lines. The ‘County Line’ is the mobile phone line used to take order of the drugs.

Musa Njie was attributed to two mobile phone numbers used as part of an operation to supply Class A drugs from the Nottinghamshire area to users in Banbury, Oxfordshire. 

The conspiracy involved using these phone lines to send out bulk marketing messages to drugs users, advertising the supply and availability of controlled drugs and instructing customers where to go to buy them from an address in the Banbury area.

Detectives used a range of different digital forensic techniques as part of their investigation to try and connect the dots and link Njie to the conspiracy, between December 2020 and March 2021.

These included the use of cell site data to map his movements and detailed analysis of phone content and transfer of data.

Through this painstaking mobile phone work, detectives were able to obtain evidence that Njie had been travelling from Nottingham to Banbury and had been in contact with lower-level drug dealers involved in the operation as well as customers.

Njie, aged 34, had been living at addresses in Eastwood and Hucknall in Nottingham while he was running the drugs line.

Following an extensive investigation Njie was arrested after police spoke to occupants who were in a car in the Radford area on 11 March 2021.

Searches were subsequently carried out at an address in Portland Road, Hucknall, where officers recovered quantities of white powder and drug paraphernalia and seized mobile phones from the property.

Njie went on to plead guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and he was jailed for seven years when he appeared for sentencing at Nottingham Crown Court on Monday (13 May 2024).

Detective Inspector Luke Todd, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “As our complex work in cases like this one shows, we are continuing to do everything in our power to prosecute criminals involved in organised drug crime and to safeguard our communities and vulnerable young people who they prey upon and exploit for their own gain.

“Our proactive County Lines team, supported by other force teams and resources, continues to tackle this problem all year round and it’s testament to the hard work, dedication, and teamwork shown by officers that we are able to shut down County Lines operations such as this one.”

Anyone who has information regarding drug dealing in their area, is urged to call Nottinghamshire Police on 101, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or dial 999 in an emergency.

For more information please visit: County lines | Nottinghamshire Police