Three men have been jailed after police dismantled a county line supplying crack cocaine and heroin in Redhill.
The operation was brought down following an investigation by the Surrey and Sussex Centurion team, which specialises in tackling county lines drug dealing across the two counties.
Adeen Gill, 24, Ramdas Shaji, 22, and Lawrence Pestell, 37, were sentenced at Guildford Crown Court on Friday, September 18, receiving prison terms totalling nine years.
The investigation began on January 27 when Centurion officers on patrol in Horley stopped a vehicle containing the three men.
Police identified Pestell as the driver, Gill as the alleged controller of the drugs line and Shaji as a runner involved in carrying out deals.
Officers searched the men and the vehicle.
Gill was found carrying a knife and £222.50 in cash, while officers recovered a mobile phone, cannabis and a package containing Class A drug wraps from Shaji.
Nothing was found on Pestell during the initial search.
A smartphone and two small bags of cannabis were also discovered inside the vehicle.
Police subsequently searched addresses linked to the men, recovering further mobile phones and drugs paraphernalia.
Three consecutive drug lines uncovered
Investigators identified three drug-line telephone numbers which had operated consecutively between December 18, 2025, and the arrests on January 27.
Centurion officers worked alongside the Metropolitan Police‘s Operation Orochi team, which specialises in disrupting urban-to-county drug networks.
Analysis of phone data enabled investigators to attribute all three lines to Gill, with police establishing that he was the overall controller of the operation.
Officers also found that Shaji occasionally controlled the drugs line but primarily worked as a runner, completing drug deals arranged by Gill.
Messages recovered during the investigation advertised deals involving crack cocaine and heroin to customers.
Prison sentences
Gill, currently residing at HMP Wandsworth, was charged with possession of an offensive weapon in a public place, being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin, possession with intent to supply heroin and crack cocaine, and possession of criminal property.
He was sentenced to four years and six months in prison.
Shaji, of South Godstone, was charged with being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin, possession with intent to supply heroin and crack cocaine, and possession of cannabis.
He was sentenced to two years in prison.
Pestell, of Salfords, was charged with being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin, possession with intent to supply heroin and crack cocaine, and two counts of possessing an offensive weapon in a private place.
He was jailed for two years and six months.
Shaji pleaded guilty at a pre-trial plea hearing, while Gill admitted the offences before trial. Pestell was found guilty following a trial.
Borough Commander Inspector Lyndsey Whatley said: “County drug lines bring far more than drugs into our communities. They drive violence, exploitation and wider criminality, placing vulnerable people at risk and causing significant harm to local neighbourhoods.
“I commend the efforts of the Centurion and Orochi teams in this case.
“We will continue to relentlessly target county lines activity, disrupt those who profit from exploitation and make Surrey an increasingly hostile environment for criminals.”
