Leeds pair jailed for running £1 million drug operation through student flats

Two men have been jailed for carrying out a drug trafficking operation worth £1 million through a student accommodation in Leeds.

Dong Jinshuo, 24, and Wang Jingshu, 28, both Chinese nationals, were sentenced on 20 November to three years imprisonment at Leeds Crown Court.

The pair were tied to a drug operation that had imported 108kg of cannabis from Canada to a student accommodation.

West Yorkshire Police stated that a man had shown up to the residence to collect parcels despite not being recognised as living in that accommodation.

This led to the man being refused entry by staff members, and the discovery of approximately 9kg of cannabis inside the parcels.

The two packages were sent to a student, who had previously received similar parcels and claimed not to know what was inside them.

63 parcels linked to the pair have been discovered, containing over 108kg of cannabis with a potential value reaching up to £1 million

On 2 May, West Yorkshire Police arrested Dong and Wang on suspicion of the improper importation of goods with intent to break importation laws.

The pair initially denied the charges, but subsequently chose to plead guilty. In the trial, the court was informed by Border Force that similar parcels of cannabis had been intercepted from Canada, where the drug was legalised in 2018.

In total, 63 parcels linked to the pair have been discovered, containing over 108kg of cannabis with a potential value reaching up to £1 million.

The two men were implicated by CCTV footage, phone analysis, and other pieces of evidence that led to their conviction. It has also been reported by West Yorkshire Police that the men recruited other students to carry out the drug operation.

Michael Herbert, Detective Chief Inspector for West Yorkshire Police, who led the investigation, said: “These men were involved in what was clearly a very significant criminal enterprise importing cannabis into the UK on a huge scale.”

He added: “While we recognise that they were ‘foot soldiers’ in what is obviously a much larger criminal network, they had active and significant roles in this operation that was bringing large amounts of drugs to the streets of Leeds and the sentences they have received reflect that.”