John Smith
Three men and a woman have been jailed for their involvement in a drugs line operating through the Black Country which saw kilograms of cocaine and large sums of cash change hands.
Kudakwashe Mutanga, from Wolverhampton, orchestrated the supply of over 81kg (178lbs) of cocaine and was involved in over £3m in cash exchanges, West Midlands Police said.
Others helped move the money and drugs, while former probation officer Dorcas Chiradza from Leicester, accessed systems to gain information on the defendants, the force added.
The three men were jailed after admitting conspiracy to supply cocaine. Chiradza was jailed for misconduct in a public office.
The defendants were identified after lengthy investigative work by the Regional Organised Crime Unit which started in 2020, the force said.
After pinpointing 48-year-old Mutanga, officers identified one of his closest associates was Amon Mambinge.
The 39-year-old from Willenhall played a leading role in the large-scale drugs distribution and movement of large sums of cash on behalf of Mutanga, between 2020 and 2021, the force said.
The third man, Arun Sahota, 39, from Wolverhampton, was also found to be involved in the operation and supply of the Class A drugs.
The men were arrested simultaneously in February 2022, at addresses in Tumbler Grove and Perbrook Road, Wolverhampton.
Chiradza, 31, was arrested at her home address.
The group were sentenced at at Stafford Crown Court on 13 June:
Mutanga, of Broad Gauge Way, Wolverhampton, was jailed for 18 years.
Mambinge, of Tennyson Road, Willenhall, was jailed for 16 years and two months.
Sahota, of Beechwood Avenue, Wolverhampton, was jailed for six years.
Chiradza, of Winforde Crescent, Leicester, was jailed for three years.
