Ian Stephens, 41, from Aliwal Road, Battersea Rise and husband and wife Elias Hajichambi, 39 and Sharan Hajichambi, 38, from Cherrywood Lane, Morden all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import Class A drugs.Successful businessman John Beaumont-Griffin, 47, from Winterdown Road, Esher pleaded not guilty to the same charge and two additional charges of supplying a Class A drug but was convicted on all three counts by a jury following a trial which concluded on Friday at Kingston Crown Court.
Ringleader Stephens was jailed for 10 years, Elias Hajichambi given five years and Sharan Hajichambi sentenced to two years. Beaumont-Griffin was jailed for four and half years.In addition, Beaumont-Griffin had his Aston Martin DB9, which was used to transport drugs, seized by police as it had been used in crime. Stephens also had his Cherokee Jeep confiscated.Detectives from SCIT were alerted to the conspiracy after customs officers intercepted a package destined for an address in Esher containing food items which had arrived on a British Airways flight from Guyana on April 23 last year.Two food tins containing Chinese sauce were X-rayed and drilled into and a white powder was discovered inside. The powder later turned out to be a kilogramme of cocaine with a street value of £100,000.Two days later a further package from Guyana containing two identical tins addressed to a flat in Thornton Heath were also intercepted. Inside the tins was a further kilo of cocaine.
An undercover officer posing as a delivery man for the courier company delivered the first package to Beaumont-Griffin at his Esher address which was under surveillance.He was later observed taking the package in his Aston Martin to the Hajichambi’s home in Morden before leaving. A short while later Stephens arrived in his Jeep to collect it.Stephens was arrested in his vehicle shortly after leaving the property and the drugs package recovered. Sharan Hajichambi and Beaumont-Griffin were both detained at their homes shortly after.When officers searched the Hajichambi’s home they discovered a plastic bag containing a Tupperware box with white powder, two sets of electronic scales, spoon and milk tablets.They also found “dealer lists”, £2,700 in cash in a bedside drawer and a further £360 in Sharan Hajichambi’s handbag.When officers searched Stephens' home they found electronic scales, clear bags, dealer lists and a bag containing crack cocaine. In addition they found a stab proof vest and Taser stun gun.Another stun gun and travel documents to Guyana in the name of a convicted drug smuggler were found in his Jeep. Cash invoices showed Stephens had recently had £3,000 worth of upgrades carried out on his vehicle despite the fact he was on state benefits.
A subsequent investigation identified a total of 19 packages coming into the UK from Guyana that are linked to the investigation. Financial records showed that since 2006, Stephens had transferred a total of £148,000 to Guyana.Detective Inspector Wendy Clay said following the case: “Stephens and his group had clearly been using the route from Guyana to Gatwick to bring in significant amounts of cocaine for their own selfish gain.“Surrey Police is committed to tackling head on the scourge of class A drugs and this case shows we will not tolerate their import, sale and supply.
“The professionalism of the officers involved in the covert operation helped halt this conspiracy in its tracks and should serve as a warning to other criminal gangs that we will use all methods at our disposal to bring those responsible for importing cocaine into the country to justice.
“In addition to the time they will serve in prison, both Stephens and Beaumont-Griffin have had their expensive cars taken away from them. This reinforces the message that crime doesn’t pay and if you use your vehicle whilst committing offences we will use the powers available to us to seize it.”Surrey Police will now seek a Confiscation Order under the Proceeds of Crime Act to seize any available assets any of the group may have.
Successful businessman John Beaumont-Griffin, 47, from Winterdown Road, Esher pleaded not guilty to the same charge and two additional charges of supplying a Class A drug but was convicted on all three counts by a jury following a trial which concluded on Friday at Kingston Crown Court.Ringleader Stephens was jailed for 10 years, Elias Hajichambi given five years and Sharan Hajichambi sentenced to two years. Beaumont-Griffin was jailed for four and half years.In addition,
Beaumont-Griffin had his Aston Martin DB9, which was used to transport drugs, seized by police as it had been used in crime. Stephens also had his Cherokee Jeep confiscated.
Detectives from SCIT were alerted to the conspiracy after customs officers intercepted a package destined for an address in Esher containing food items which had arrived on a British Airways flight from Guyana on April 23 last year.
Two food tins containing Chinese sauce were X-rayed and drilled into and a white powder was discovered inside. The powder later turned out to be a kilogramme of cocaine with a street value of £100,000.Two days later a further package from Guyana containing two identical tins addressed to a flat in Thornton Heath were also intercepted. Inside the tins was a further kilo of cocaine.An undercover officer posing as a delivery man for the courier company delivered the first package to Beaumont-Griffin at his Esher address which was under surveillance.
He was later observed taking the package in his Aston Martin to the Hajichambi’s home in Morden before leaving. A short while later Stephens arrived in his Jeep to collect it.Stephens was arrested in his vehicle shortly after leaving the property and the drugs package recovered. Sharan Hajichambi and Beaumont-Griffin were both detained at their homes shortly after.When officers searched the Hajichambi’s home they discovered a plastic bag containing a Tupperware box with white powder, two sets of electronic scales, spoon and milk tablets.They also found “dealer lists”, £2,700 in cash in a bedside drawer and a further £360 in Sharan Hajichambi’s handbag.When officers searched Stephens' home they found electronic scales, clear bags, dealer lists and a bag containing crack cocaine. In addition they found a stab proof vest and Taser stun gun.Another stun gun and travel documents to Guyana in the name of a convicted drug smuggler were found in his Jeep. Cash invoices showed Stephens had recently had £3,000 worth of upgrades carried out on his vehicle despite the fact he was on state benefits.A subsequent investigation identified a total of 19 packages coming into the UK from Guyana that are linked to the investigation. Financial records showed that since 2006, Stephens had transferred a total of £148,000 to Guyana.
Detective Inspector Wendy Clay said following the case: “Stephens and his group had clearly been using the route from Guyana to Gatwick to bring in significant amounts of cocaine for their own selfish gain.“Surrey Police is committed to tackling head on the scourge of class A drugs and this case shows we will not tolerate their import, sale and supply.
“The professionalism of the officers involved in the covert operation helped halt this conspiracy in its tracks and should serve as a warning to other criminal gangs that we will use all methods at our disposal to bring those responsible for importing cocaine into the country to justice.“In addition to the time they will serve in prison, both Stephens and Beaumont-Griffin have had their expensive cars taken away from them. This reinforces the message that crime doesn’t pay and if you use your vehicle whilst committing offences we will use the powers available to us to seize it.”
Surrey Police will now seek a Confiscation Order under the Proceeds of Crime Act to seize any available assets any of the group may have.
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