A FURTHER eight members of a south Wales drugs gang which raked in around £5 million selling cocaine and laundered the money by converting into cryptocurrency have been jailed for more than 40 years.

Four other members of the gang, including ringleader Amir Khan, were jailed yesterday - for more than 43 years.

Today, one of the defendants before Judge Jeremy Jenkins at Cardiff Crown Court was Amir Khan's partner Caitlyn De Jager.

South Wales Argus: Caitlyn De Jager

The court heard that De Jager, 24, from Cardiff, was being sentenced for concealing criminal property and being concerned in the conspiracy to supply cocaine.

She was caught moving $176,000 in crypto currency "from under the very noses of the police". The currency remains missing.

De Jager, the court heard, was assisting Khan, preparing drugs to be sold further on.

She was aware of the drugs being cut with baking soda and let Khan use her mobile phone to contact people in the drug distribution network.

De Jager reminded members of the gang to switch cars to evade capture and wanted Khan to be driven everywhere so he was not caught.

The court heard that she was fully aware of the drugs operation.

In mitigation, it was noted that there was a "substantial delay" in bringing the sentencing before the court.

De Jager was appearing before the court for the first time in her life.

De Jager's solicitor said: "She is the youngest defendant in this case. She has only just turned 24.

"She would have been 19 at the time of the offences.

"She is the mother of two children – both born after the offending took place.

"Khan, sentenced yesterday, is their father and has been in custody for much of their lives."

Khan was described as "no ordinary partner or father".

"It is highly unlikely that Khan will provide any meaningful contribution to the care and upkeep of her children for years to come," De Jager's defence continued.

"This is a very sad case. She lived a life of agony, not a life of pleasure."

Judge Jenkins, however, said: "She moved the money under the very noses of the police.

"They were staggering amounts of money."

De Jager was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for her concern in the conspiracy to supply cocaine.

She was also sentenced to a further 12 months imprisonment for money laundering.

The two sentences are to run consecutively.

Seven other gang members were sentenced by Judge Jenkins during today's proceedings.

Matthew Dean, 35, from Caerphilly, was given a custodial sentence of four years and three months.

Callum Richards, 25, from Caerphilly,  was given a custodial sentence of nine years and six months.

Ian Kidley, 24, from Caerphilly, was given a custodial sentence of two years.

Darryl Skym, 28, from Caerphilly, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Leon Sullivan, 25, from Caerphilly, was sentenced to 11 years and four months in prison.

All five were for conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Sami Rehman, 28, from Cardiff,  was sentenced to 18 months in prison for money laundering.

Ringleader Amir Khan's sister Sidra Khan, 27, from Birmingham,  was sentenced to 18 months in prison - suspended for 18 months.

This was for money laundering. She will also have to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

Gwent Police comment on Operation Solana drugs gang sentencings

Operation Solana, led by Gwent Police, was a two-year long investigation to dismantle the network set up by the OCG, and involved working with partners from Dyfed Powys Police, South Wales Police and West Midlands Police as well as the regional and organised crime unit (ROCU) and the National Crime Agency.

Detective constable Michael Coles who led the investigation said: “These sentences are the culmination of more than two years of meticulous work to disrupt, dismantle and bring this organised crime group to justice.

“The group operated on a hierarchical basis, sourcing vast amounts of cocaine and relied on the help of close friends and associates to distribute the drugs to dealers in south and mid Wales.

“Joshua Billingham and Amir Khan played the leading management role and used friends and family to launder the money obtained through drugs to cryptocurrency accounts in their names. 

“The court heard how the group used stash houses and industrial units to store, mix and supply their drugs. Between them, they supplied more than 40 kilograms of cocaine, a street value of £4,600,000, to drug dealers across Wales.

“The total value of Crypto currency that passed through the OCG’s accounts was more than £3,000,000.

“This is one of the first cases in Gwent where cryptocurrency was used to launder money.

“Due to the hard work and expertise of our cyber crime unit, we were able to trace the money and bring these offenders to justice.

“We’re delighted with the sentences issued and hope it serves as a deterrent to those who choose to involve themselves with organised crime. 

“We will not just pursue those supplying the drugs, we will also take positive action against those who choose to aid in their criminality such as concealing financial rewards.

“I’d like to thank our partners who worked with us on this case as they helped us to make arrests and gather intelligence to allow us to provide further evidence of this group’s illegal activity.”