Drug dealer dumped £400,000 cocaine stash after M1 chase through Northamptonshire

A drug dealer has been jailed for 7½ years after being hunted down by Northamptonshire's Armed Response Vehicle team in a dramatic motorway chase.

Arian Aliaj fled after police attempted to stop him on the M1 near Junction 15 back on March 22.

The crack ARV team tracked Aliaj in his Audi A6 in a high-speed pursuit through Northamptonshire towards Rugby that ended with him dumping his car and a 4kg cocaine stash worth around £400,000.

Three kilos of cocaine had been discarded close to the vehicle and a fourth kilogram was found in the boot.

The 36-year-old Londoner was then arrested after cops caught him travelling in another car later on the same day.

Aliaj, from Freshfields Drive, Southgate, pleaded guilty to charges of possession with intent to supply class A drugs and dangerous driving at a hearing on 24 March.

He was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court last week.

Investigators from the joint National Crime Agency and Metropolitan Police Organised Crime Partnership arrested Aliaj when they stopped a black BMW on an M40 slip road.

When officers searched his house, they found additional amounts of cocaine, drugs paraphernalia and almost £4,000 in cash.

OCP Operations Manager Matthew McMillan said: “Not only was Aliaj involved in endangering people through the criminal supply of drugs, he was willing to recklessly risk the lives of road users in a bid to evade arrest.

“Through the OCP's work with local police forces, we were able to seize this cocaine before it made it onto the streets.

“Class A drugs are always linked to serious and organised crime and their supply relies on exploitation, violence and intimidation that harms people across the UK.

“Despite the current lockdown, the NCA and Met Police are not letting up our efforts to tackle serious and organised crime and protect the public.”