STORY
Kawser Azad has been jailed for seven years after admitting serious county lines drug offences linked to the supply of heroin and crack cocaine across East Kent. Kent Police said Azad, 29, of Countess Road, Northampton, was identified by detectives as a leading member of the “Marlow line”, a county line supplying drugs in the Canterbury area. Officers linked him to drug supply activity after an investigation that began in 2022.
Azad was arrested on Wednesday 13 July 2022 after officers spotted him driving a black Mercedes along Stodmarsh Road. Police said he drove away at high speed when an unmarked police vehicle activated its lights, reaching at least 72mph in a 30mph zone before stopping in Sussex Avenue.
A search of the car uncovered two mobile phones and around 70 wraps of suspected Class A drugs. Forensic tests later confirmed the packages included 37 wraps of diamorphine and 38 wraps of crack cocaine. Police also found evidence of drug dealing on the phones, including bulk messages sent to hundreds of contacts advertising drug deals.
Azad was charged with four offences, including two counts of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, facilitating a person with intent to exploit and dangerous driving. He later pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday 1 May. Detective Constable Danny Holloway said Azad had brought “dangerous illegal drugs into East Kent” and said the sentence should serve as a warning to others involved in drug trafficking.