Dealer found with drugs wrapped in lottery tickets jailed

Police discovered more than a kilogram of cocaine at his home

Author: Ryan BurrowsPublished 1st Sep 2020

A West Sussex drug dealer found with more than a kilogram of cocaine wrapped up in individual lottery tickets has been jailed for almost six years.

Officers found the Class A drug, along with thousands of pounds in cash, at the home of 27-year-old Domeniko Dedaj in Kingsland Road in Broadwater, Worthing.

On June 11th, officers were conducting a search in the area to locate stolen sports equipment. During the search, officers knocked on Dedaj’s door and he allowed them entry to the property.

Officers then located a large bag of money in the bedside drawer, under the bed and further cash was found in the wardrobe; totaling to nearly £27,000.

Some of the cash found by officers searching Domeniko Dedaj's home

Also inside the wardrobe, officer seized approximately 1.2kg of cocaine, some of which had been which had been portioned out and individually wrapped in lottery tickets.

Dedaj was arrested and later charged with money laundering and possession with intent to supply cocaine.

Appearing at Lewes Crown Court on August 14th following an earlier guilty plea, Dedaj was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison.

More than a kilogram of cocaine was discovered inside the property in Broadwater

Investigating officer Detective Constable Katie Clack said: “We welcome the sentence Dedaj has been handed by the courts.

"Drugs can cause a huge amount of disruption to the community and we are committed to tackling this behaviour.

“We would urge everyone to report drug matters to us. Let’s work together and deter this behaviour from continuing.”

Dedaj will spend a total of just over five and a half years behind bars