A CANVEY man has been jailed for his part in a £1million drug dealing and money laundering scam.

Jason Warner was handed eight years and four months behind bars after he admitted four counts of conspiring to supply drugs and three counts of money laundering.

In October 2018, officers from the national crime agency identified that the 48-year-old was involved in supplying cocaine, cannabis and amphetamines across London and Essex.

Intelligence suggested he worked alongside Dennis Jacobs, 71, from Romford and RAF sergeant, David Corentin, from Rainham.

On October 12, Corentin was stopped by investigators on the A13 after they spotted Warner place a number of large bags into the vehicle he was driving.

When searched, the bags contained more than £500,000.

An encrypted phone was also found in Corentin’s vehicle and officers believe this was used to communicate with other members of the organised crime gang to avoid law enforcement detection.

Warner was arrested 11 days later as he left the sheltered accommodation – where his mother’s partner Dennis Jacobs lived – and found to be in possession of a quantity of cocaine.

Officers searched Jacobs’ flat and found 9.5kg of high-purity cocaine, 1.5kg of MDMA, 11kg of amphetamine and 26kg of cannabis resin with an estimated street value of more than £1 million.

Approximately £120,000 was stashed in a safe and various cutting agents and a hydraulic press hidden in the bedroom cupboard were also recovered.

John Coles, head of the specialist operations unit at the National Crime Agency said: “Organised crime groups rely on professional enablers like Corentin, Warner and Jacobs to supply cocaine and other Class A and B drugs across the UK.

“They are important links in the chain and disrupting their activities is a key priority for the NCA.”

Corentin admitted two counts of money laundering and was sentenced to two years and three months in prison.

Jacobs admitted three counts of permitting his premises to be used for the production of a controlled substance and one count of money laundering and was sentenced to 12 months.

All three were sentenced on Thursday at Kingston Crown Court, in west London.