In a major drug enforcement success, Thames Valley Police (TVP) dismantled a sophisticated illegal drugs network based in Berkshire in June last year. The group operated through a WhatsApp business called ‘Vicstore’, disguising drug deals behind a fake clothing brand, using online orders, coded drop boxes, and postal services to distribute class A, B and C drugs around Reading, Wokingham, and Farnborough.
Hidden Operation Uncovered
The network used multiple container storage units across Berkshire to store and package drugs. The criminal enterprise was run by 31-year-old Erik Gasparovsky from Oxford Road, Tilehurst, who was aided by 38-year-old Judit Zaid from Feltham, London, and 42-year-old Istvan Teczely, a person of no fixed address.
Targeted Police Raids
In coordinated raids, Gasparovsky was arrested at home in Reading, where police seized branded clothes, phones, and drug paraphernalia linking him to Vicstore. On the same day, officers caught Zaid loading a safe containing around £2,000 cash and various drugs into her car at a Reading storage unit. Teczely was detained in Hampshire by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary with evidence connecting him to the network.
Seizures And Evidence
Searches of storage containers in Farnborough and Wokingham revealed further quantities of MDMA, methylamphetamine, amphetamine, ketamine, cocaine, cannabis, and other substances, valued collectively at thousands of pounds. Extensive forensic analysis and CCTV confirmed the trio’s involvement in the supply chain prior to arrests.
Sentencing At Reading Crown Court
On 16 April at Reading Crown Court, Gasparovsky was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison, Teczely received a three-year sentence, and Zaid was jailed for two years and four months, totalling 12 years and eight months behind bars. The judge ordered the forfeiture and destruction of all seized drugs and mobile phones, with a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing forthcoming.
Guilty Pleas Confirmed
The defendants had previously pleaded guilty in October last year to multiple counts related to the supply of class A and B controlled drugs, including cocaine, ecstasy, methylamphetamine, cannabis, ketamine, and mephedrone. Gasparovsky also admitted to acquiring criminal property during the operations.
