Drug dealer who fled to Jamaica after arrest is jailed

Officers patrolling in Combe Valley Way in Bexhill stopped Tafari Grant when they saw his car because it was suspected to be involved with drugs activity.

Grant was told he and his black Vauxhall Astra would be searched under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

As police carried out the search, which took place on the afternoon of June 21, 2018, the 45-year-old chef sat in the back of a police car.

Tafari Grant

An officer noticed he was fiddling with the seat pocket in front of him.

The officer checked the pocket and found two Kinder Surprise Egg capsules, which were later confirmed to contain 41 wraps of crack cocaine and 29 wraps of heroin, with a combined estimated street value of £1,400.

A Nokia mobile phone battery was also found and when officers searched Grant they found a Nokia phone with its battery removed and £140 in cash.

Grant was arrested on suspicion of two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, and was released under investigation.

Police later found damning evidence against Grant, including his DNA on the capsules and messaging on his phone referring to the sale of drugs.

The Kinder Egg capsules contained 41 wraps of crack cocaine and 29 wraps of heroin

But when Grant, from Mitcham, was invited back to be interviewed, police were told he had flown to the US and Canada to attend family funerals.

Further investigation found Grant had absconded to Jamaica, and it was not until he returned to the UK that he was again arrested, nearly 18 months after he was searched and arrested in Bexhill.

Grant pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.

At Lewes Crown Court on Friday he was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for each offence, to run concurrently.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Julian Stokes said: “Grant tried to deceive police from the beginning, hiding his stash of drugs inside the police car.

“Even after his arrest, he tried to evade police by absconding to Jamaica.

“However, while he hoped we may have forgotten about him, we certainly did not and we were waiting to arrest him on his return back into the country.

“This was a great stop by police officers on patrol that has resulted in almost £1,500 worth of dangerous drugs being taken off our streets and destroyed.”