South Londoner Mohammed Yousuf’s phone showed him conspiring with others to recruit children
A South London gang has been jailed after one of their recruiters was caught in a car with a missing child and a tub of Vaseline. Mohammed Yousuf, 21, was stopped in Surrey with the kid in November 2023, along with £1,000 in cash and a pot of the branded petroleum jelly. A Surrey Police spokesperson said: “We don’t believe was being used as a lip balm.”
A review of Yousuf’s phone revealed a huge volume of messages related to drug supply and conspiring with others to recruit children. ‘We need to get more yutes’ and ‘Make him want to do it. keep asking bro, girls whatever bro, at least we make the doe [money]’ were just some of the messages the men sent as they exploited children in Surrey, London, and Hampshire.
In dawn raids on March 7 2024, Ahmed Al Khudairy, 21, of Kingston, and Edward Atudorei, 19, of Sutton, were arrested, charged and remanded for arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation and being concerned in the supply of Class A and B drugs. Later that day, Yousuf, of Kingston was also arrested, charged and remanded for the same offences.
On March 12, Ronnie Read, 24, of Thames Ditton, was arrested for concern of drugs supply, followed by Ali Cayir, 23, also of Thames Ditton on June 12.
‘These men thought they could keep ahead of the law’
After a six-week trial at Guildford Crown Court:
- Al Khudairy got six years for conspiring to arrange the travel of another person with a view to exploitation and of being concerned in the supply of Class A, B and C drugs.
- Yousuf got three years and six moths for conspiring to arrange the travel of another person with a view to exploitation.
- Atudorei got four years six months for conspiring to arrange the travel of another person with a view to exploitation and was sentenced to three-years.
- Cayir got four years six months for being concerned in the supply of Class A and B drugs, possessing with intent to supply Class B drugs, and being in possession of criminal property.
- Ronnie Read got five years for being concerned in the supply of Class A and B drugs.
DC Michael Bambrough who led the investigation, said: “These men thought they could keep ahead of the law by recruiting children to do the dirty work for them. By targeting the ring leaders of this activity, rather than the victims who were treated as a commodity, we believe we have completely dismantled the activities of this criminal gang.
“We are doing all we can to make Surrey the safest county it can be, but we rely on information from the public. If you believe you’ve seen signs of drug dealing in your community, we urge you to say something and report it to us.”
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