THIS is the moment a half-naked drug dealer was caught hiding in a wardrobe and arrested after he exposed his location on public Wi-Fi.
The Met Police had been investigating the ‘Bobby’ drugs line after examining the mobile phones seized by children suspected of being involved in the supply of narcotics.
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However, the dealer in charge of the line had taken extensive steps to conceal their location and had been running all devices through a virtual private network (VPN).
They were able to identify Joel Louis, 34, of Wembley, North London, as the line owner after he inadvertently logged into a public Wi-Fi connection at an address he was hiding at.
As soon as officers had this intelligence, they executed a warrant at the address in Wembley on July 7.
Louis had tried to hide in a wardrobe but was immediately discovered by officers.
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Bodycam footage shows the moment officers find him.
One officer says: “Come down, mate.”
During the arrest Louis asked officers: “How did you find me?”.
Later analysis of his phone found Louis was receiving more than 100 calls a day from his contact list of nearly 250 drug users.
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He had also bragged to some about how he owned a firearm.
A search of the address led to the recovery of Class A drugs, including cocaine and heroin with a street value of £8,800, approximately £8,000 in cash and six mobile phones.
One of which was identified as the phone used to run the ‘Bobby’ line.
Officers also found a loaded firearm concealed inside a box, thirteen rounds of 9mm ammunition, including three rounds loaded into the firearm’s magazine, a machete, and a flip knife.
Louis was charged on July 7 with two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, possession of offensive weapon in a private place, possession of a firearm, and possession of ammunition.
Detective Constable Lauren Gresty, who led the investigation, said: “Louis recruited numerous young people to move drugs around north Kilburn, exposing them to violence, intimidation and criminality for his own financial gain.
“County lines devastates lives. It is far more than drug dealing. It causes damage to local communities through its connections to acquisitive crimes and anti-social behaviour.
“Louis believed he could hide from police to further his offending, but this result shows our tenacity in going after those who cause the most harm in London.”
At Harrow Crown Court, Louis was sentenced to 12 years’ and nine months’ imprisonment for offences connected to the supply of cocaine and heroin in north Kilburn.