An EncroChat dealer known as ‘Ripebrow’ was found to be producing ecstasy pills shaped like Donald Trump in a hidden storage unit.
Dealer Jay Roberts, from Nelson Road, Ellesmere Port, used the encrypted messaging network EncroChat to buy and sell cocaine, MDMA, ketamine, and cannabis during the Covid-19 lockdown. However, the 31-year-old didn’t just trade drugs – he also manufactured his own in a secret storage unit, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Images taken from Roberts’ storage unit revealed a press covered in blue powder where he would produce ecstasy pills for his clientele. The photos showed that he moulded the pills into various shapes and designs, including the logo of courier company UPS and the face of ex-US president Donald Trump.
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(Image: Cheshire Police)
Roberts’ operation came crashing down when detectives from Cheshire’s serious and organised crime unit managed to access the EncroChat network following a hack in April 2020. Data analysis revealed Roberts discussing the sales of Class A and B drugs between March 2020 and June 2020.
Cops discovered Roberts bragging about how the Covid pandemic could be a goldmine for his dodgy dealings. He was caught on messages revealing how lockdowns would knock his rivals out of business and choke off their stash.
Using his connections with big-time suppliers, Roberts got his hands on hefty hauls of narcotics before dishing them out to other crooks on EncroChat. Roberts had shifted 19 kilos of cocaine, three kilos of MDMA, 1.5 kilos of ketamine, and a whopping 23 kilos of cannabis from March to June 2020.
(Image: Cheshire Police)
On November 28, 2023, around 1.40pm, a white Mercedes linked to Roberts was spotted by ANPR cameras on the M6. With the help of a police helicopter, officers managed to corner his car and arrest him on suspicion of conspiracy to supply class A drugs.
Following his arrest, a search of his home revealed substantial amounts of cocaine and cannabis. Further investigation led to a storage unit used by Roberts, where they found an ecstasy pill press, a cash counting machine, and other drug-related items, including dealer lists.
Roberts faced multiple drug charges, including conspiracy to supply Class A and B drugs and involvement in the production of Class A drugs. He admitted to conspiring to supply cocaine, MDMA ketamine and cannabis, producing MDMA, and possessing criminal property. On Friday, May 3, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison at Chester Crown Court.
(Image: Cheshire Police)
Detective Chief Inspector Nick Henderson, from Cheshire Police’s serious and organised crime unit, commented: “We have been relentless in pursuing those who have so far been identified as using the secretive encrypted device in order to commit organised crime, and Roberts is one of many who thought they could operate above the law, but my team were hot on his tail.
“Roberts was a well-established organised criminal and a key player in the large-scale commercial drugs business, supplying substantial amounts of illegal drugs in the Chester and Ellesmere Port areas which he profited from and led to him living a lavish lifestyle.
“He reaped the benefits of his ill-gotten gains while the rest of the country were adhering to lockdown restrictions, but it was always going to catch up with him. Thanks to the work undertaken by my detectives who analysed the messages, he is now behind bars facing justice.
“This shows that no matter what you think you are doing to cover your tracks, we are one step ahead. We will do everything we can to make sure that each and every individual involved in serious and organised crime pays for the misery that they bring to communities across Cheshire.”
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