A popular dealer in crypto and drugs, identified as Simon Barclay has been jailed by the Leeds Crown Court after pleading guilty to possession of illegal cryptocurrencies and drugs. The West York Police confirmed the development in a release on Tuesday. According to the release, the 41 years old prior to his arrest and conviction by the court usually sell cocaine via the dark web.
Barclay became sentenced to nine years imprisonment after the court established that he was guilty of illegal possession of Class A and Class B drugs. As revealed, the drugs entail about €1.2 million worth of cocaine and heroin. The police also found cryptocurrencies associated to a cybercrime valued at about €5.48 million in late 2021.
The Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) first tracked his use of the dark web to aid cocaine sales. This unit manifested alongside the Regional Cyber Crime Unit as a national response toward curbing darkweb criminality in the UK. Consequently, the Yorkshire, Humber Regional Cyber Crime Unit, and Kirklees Police became involved in the investigation. This joint investigation between the Kirkless District Programme Precision Team and the Yorkshire regional cyber crime unit led to the arrest of the convict.
How Barclay was monitored and nabbed by the Police
The agencies tracked Barclay using consistent drops to a local post office from addresses attached to him. After a series of joint efforts, the Kirklees Programme Precision operatives nabbed the 41-year-old late last year. Upon his arrest, the officers scrutinized all his belongings, including computed equipment. This thus led to the recovery of about €5.48 million crypto and €1.2 million worth of cocaine and heroin.
An officer of the Kirklees Police Programme Team, Simon Reddington said Barclay remains a hardened player in the criminal industry. According to Reddington, the convict prior to his arrest consistently sell Class A drugs in Kirkless and across the country. The operative further that the court sentence on the convict reflected the gravity of his involvement in illegality.
Reddington confirmed that the arrest of Barclay manifested through the robust collaborations between Kirklees Police and partner agencies. More so, a Darkweb Technical and Capabilities Lead for the NPCC Cyber Crime Programme, DCI Phil Donnelly remarked that the National Cybercrime Programme stays committed to working hard to foster devoted and professional cybercrime police operatives across the length and breath of Wales and England. As revealed, the authorities intend to sell the proceeds recovered from all criminal acts later this year.
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