Recipients of packages containing cannabis were paid between £50 and £200 by the gang, who prepared the drugs for onward supply
(Top left to right) Abubakr Khawar, Mohammed Hussain, Abdu Husain. (Middle left to right) Sean Montgomery, Keiran Jones, Solomon Bertram. (Bottom left to right) Steven Munroe, Kyle Solowyk, Andrew Pethers.(Image: Tarian)
An organised crime group (OCG) arranged for £3.2m of cannabis to be imported from the USA to the UK and delivered to 80 homes in Wales. A number of parcels were intercepted by the authorities following the arrest of a postal worker.
The enterprise was led by Abubakr Khawar, 28, who liaised with contacts in America to transport high-quality cannabis into the UK from seven states, and arranged for colleagues to collect parcels from recipients who were paid between £50 and £200 for agreeing to receive packages of cannabis.
A sentencing hearing at Cardiff Crown Court on Wednesday heard the cannabis was then taken to a stash house in Cardiff, where the substance was broken down into smaller amounts and redistributed to other suppliers and users. For the latest court reports sign up to our crime newsletter.
Abubakr Khawar, 28, was sentenced to eight years imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
A police investigation discovered the operation began on November 10, 2022, with 80 addresses identified as being the recipients of packages of cannabis.
Border Force intercepted a total of 327kg of cannabis destined for addresses in Wales linked to the OCG, which was said to have made between £3,000 and £10,000 worth of profit a day during the period of the enterprise.
The other leading figures in the OCG were Mohammed Hussain, 28, and Abdu Husain, 29, who were described as Khawar’s “trusted lieutenants”.
Mohammed Hussain, 28, was sentenced to six years imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
They were involved in supplying, distributing and storing drugs and moving hundreds and thousands of cash as a result of the illegal trade.
The OCG collected up to £290,000 in cash and used passwords and postcodes in order to achieve some form of secrecy and security.
Mohammed Hussain was tasked with collecting cannabis from residential properties, making payments to recipients and managing the storage and distribution to other suppliers and users.
Mohammed Hussain posing with cash, the profits of supplying cannabis.(Image: Tarian)
His phone revealed messages, including photographs of himself collecting a large number of parcels and said he would “get a lengthy prison term if caught”. There were also photographs of him posing with large sums of cash.
Abdu Husain identified addresses in the UK, collected packages of cannabis, and made payments to recipients.
Sophie Jones, 33, was described as a “significant member of the OCG” and is alleged to have been responsible for receiving cannabis shipments from America and recruiting family and friends for additional residential properties for those deliveries.
Around 7kg of cannabis was intended for her address, and 56kg has been intercepted or recovered from properties linked to her.
Abdu Husain, 29, was sentenced to three years imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
Sean Montgomery, 24, was seen on CCTV attempting to collect and arrange parcels from Barry Royal Mail depot, but failed as he did not have correct identification and the address was fictitious.
Keiran Jones, 29, Sophie’s brother, also received cannabis shipments from America to his home and 15.3kg of cannabis intended for his address was intercepted, as well as hundreds of glass jars and lids to be used by the OCG.
Solomon Bertram, 36, received cannabis shipments and 8kg of cannabis was intercepted by Border Force, and Steven Munroe, 45, a neighbour of Sophie Jones, allowed one shipment to be delivered to his address.
Sean Montgomery, 24, was sentenced to three years and six months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
Kyle Solowyk, 29, received cannabis shipments from America, and 21kg of cannabis was intercepted by Border Force.
Andrew Pethers, 36, received and concealed parcels of cannabis, not only at his own premises but at others in the vicinity of his home in Old St Mellons. Pethers, with 3kg of cannabis intercepted in his case.
Daniel Marshall, 40, collected cannabis packages from residential properties, made payments to recipients and managed storage, as well as collecting and transporting wholesale values of cannabis under direction.
Keiran Jones, 29, was sentenced to 26 months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
When police discovered the OCG’s stash house at a dilapidated out building in Ninian Road, Roath, there were 59 empty packages which had contained cannabis, which had been posted from the USA between November 21 and 30, 2024.
Prosecutor Roger Griffiths said this indicated the scale of the operation, and the amount of packages being delivered during a period of just nine days.
Also discovered in the stash were three vacuum bags of cannabis, totalling 3.1kg, recycling bags containing glass jars, a bag of 150g of cannabis and pre-rolled spliffs.
Solomon Bertram, 36, was sentenced to 22 months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
The enterprise came to light following the arrest of two men in November 2022, one of which was a postal worker, who was found to have intercepted parcels from California and delivered them on behalf of others.
The worker’s replacement later described an incident on November 11, 2022, when he was approached by a man, now known as Mohammed Hussain, near Castle Park.
He was asked by Hussain if there was a parcel for an address in Kidwelly Grove, he confirmed there was and handed it over. They briefly discussed postal strikes and Hussain drove off in a Volkswagen Passat.
Steven Munroe, 45, was sentenced to 32 months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
The postal worker later became aware his colleague had been arrested and to be cautious of parcels addressed to the address in Kidwelly Grove.
On November 14, a suspicious box arrived at the sorting office. That same day, the Asian man approached the postal delivery worker asking for a parcel for Kidwelly Grove. The worker told him there was not one and the man drove off. The postal worker took the number plates and reported it to his manager.
An investigation revealed the vehicle was registered to an address in Bournemouth in the name of Mohammed Hussain. The defendant was later arrested in February, 2023.
Cannabis seized from parcels intercepted by Royal Mail.(Image: Tarian)
On July 31, 2024, police received a call reporting a suspicious package from the Royal Mail depot in Penarth Road, 10 packages for two different addresses. There were 18 bags of cannabis in total, three for the home of Munroe and the address of Sophie Jones.
On September 16, 2024, police went to the home of Khawar and a large sum of cash, just over £75,000, was recovered. A Rolex Skydweller, worth £14,000, and an Apple iPhone were also recovered.
On October 28, officers went to the Royal Mail depot in Barry regarding a suspicious package from the USA, labelled as Yankee candles, which was expected to contain cannabis. CCTV obtained revealed Sean Montgomery had tried to pick up the parcel.
Kyle Solowyk, 29, was sentenced to 34 months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
On November 22, 2024, police in the West Midlands stopped a Toyota Corolla driven by Mohammed Hussain. An Apple iPhone was seized which contained a video of a package of cannabis.
All of the defendants were arrested between December 9, 2024, and February 12, this year.
Abdu Husain was also arrested in respect of a separate conspiracy, involving 4kg of cannabis which were addressed to Zenith and Altolusso accommodation buildings in Cardiff.
Andrew Pethers, 36, was sentenced to three years imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
Khawar, of Despenser Street, Riverside, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has no previous convictions.
Mohammed Hussain, of Ninian Park Road, Riverside, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has no previous convictions.
Abdu Husain, of Clos Parc Morgannwg, Leckwith, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction, conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B, and conspiracy to fraudulently evade any duty/prohibition/ restriction/provision. He has a previous conviction for possession with intent to supply class B drugs.
Daniel Marshall, 40, was sentenced to 32 months imprisonment.(Image: Tarian)
Sophie Jones, of Cwrt Sanquhar, Splott, Cardiff, was convicted of was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. She has previous convictions for possession of class A, B and C drugs.
Montgomery, of Uplands Road, Rumney, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has previous convictions for possession with intent to supply class A drugs.
Keiran Jones, of Odet Court, Whitchurch, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has no previous convictions.
Cash seized from the organised crime gang involved in transporting cannabis from America.(Image: Tarian)
Bertram, of Malvern Drive, Llanishen, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has convictions for dissimilar offences.
Munroe, of New House Court, Cadoxton, Barry, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has previous convictions for attempting to supply class B drugs.
Solowyk, of Jewel Street, Barry, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has convictions for possession with intent to supply class C drugs and possession of class B drugs.
Pethers, of Drawlings Close, Old St Mellons, Cardiff, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has previous convictions for possession with intent to supply class B drugs and drug driving.
Marshall, of Perrott Street, Merthyr Tydfil, was convicted of conspiracy to import a controlled drug of class B with intent to evade a prohibition/restriction and conspiracy to supply a controlled drug of class B. He has convictions for dissimilar offences.
Sentencing on Thursday, Judge Eugene Egan said: “You played for high stakes and knew the risks… I daresay you enjoyed the money you made but you have now lost after ending up in the crown court for sentence.”
Khawar was sentenced to eight years imprisonment.
Mohammed Hussain was sentenced to six years imprisonment.
Abdu Husain was sentenced to six years imprisonment.
Sophie Jones was not sentenced and will appear at court on October 10 for a trial of issue.
Montgomery was sentenced to three years and six months imprisonment.
Keiran Jones was sentenced to 26 months imprisonment.
Bertram was sentenced to 22 months imprisonment.
Munroe was sentenced to 32 months imprisonment.
Solowyk was sentenced to 34 months imprisonment.
Pethers was sentenced to three years imprisonment.
Marshall was sentenced to 32 months imprisonment.
Following the hearing, Detective Constable Sean Meyrick of Tarian ROCU said: “The sentencing concludes a protracted and complex investigation that involved multiple law enforcement agencies and partners and resulted in the dismantling of a sophisticated organised crime group.
“This group demonstrated the financial capacity to absorb multi-million-pound losses, highlighting both the scale of the group’s operation and the resilience of their revenue streams. These 11 individuals took pleasure in their offending as they profited from the harm they caused to others.
“I am pleased with the sentences that were handed down today and I hope they serve as a warning to others. I would like to thank our partners, in particular UK Border Force and the Royal Mail, for their assistance in this investigation.
Jenny Hopkins of the CPS said: “This group was highly organised and criminally sophisticated. They were arranging and managing transatlantic deliveries to about 80 properties in the UK and then used an extensive distribution network to move the drugs on.
“They tried to evade responsibility for their criminality by making regular changes to the distribution patterns, but they were still caught.
“The Crown Prosecution Service built a strong case from the evidence, which resulted in these convictions. This case demonstrates the commitment of the Crown Prosecution Service and law enforcement partners to disrupting drug supply chains and bringing those involved in serious organised crime to justice.”