£4M MARIO LINE DRUG DEALERS JAILED

Two Watford men have been sentenced to 11 years imprisonment for their roles in a gang which dealt more £4m of cocaine. Brigal Culaj, 31, of Ganders Ash, and Sajmir Xhakrosa, 35, of Turnberry Court, were among 13 people to be caught out following an operation by Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Serious and Organised Crime Group- which culminated in warrants being served at dawn on May 8 2013. Both were involved in the ‘Mario Line’, a drugs gang Culaj jointly ran after leader Besnik Sinanaj was arrested in Falmouth in April 2013. As many as 99,000 calls were made to the Mario Line between May 2012 and May 2013, with high purity cocaine sold for between £40 and £50. More than £4m worth was sold during that period. The group were sentenced on February 14 and 17 at Harrow Crown Court. They had all pleaded guilty at earlier hearings at the same court. Culaj was sentenced to six years and eight months, while Xhakrosa got four years and six months. Mario Line ringleader Besnik Sinanaj, 35, from Royalist Court in Falmouth, was sentenced to ten years. All three had been charged with conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Detective Chief Inspector Mike Trotman from the Serious and Organised Crime Group said: “The Mario Line was one of the most organised and prolific drugs lines to have operated in Western Hertfordshire and I am pleased that we have dismantled this and that the majority of those involved in its operation are now in prison.” He added: “Hertfordshire remains one of the safest counties in the country and I want to send a clear message to anyone involved in drug crimes that we will use every power available to us to build intelligence, carry out warrants and bring offenders to justice.”