THE eighth member of a drug dealing network has been jailed following an investigation by detectives.

Aaron Wise, 33, of West Ealing. was sentenced to 16 years in prison last week at Isleworth Crown Court for conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Wise is the most recent member of a drugs network to be sentenced after Met officers spent more than a year gathering evidence.

The highly-organised group was distributing cocaine across all of west and east London, fuelling drug addiction.

The encrypted EncroChat platform was infiltrated and, with the help of the National Crime Agency, detectives began a covert operation, investigating drug distributors across London.

They analysed four years of phone data to unravel the true extent of the network’s reach. The court heard how the gang supplied more than 100kg of cocaine to Londoners in 2019-2020 – an estimated street value of £8m

Wise was the mastermind, in charge of splitting the network into drug couriers and cash couriers, making it harder for officers to track them down.

As members of the network were arrested, Wise fled the country, but the Met worked with Spanish authorities and tracked him down to Marbella.

James Lee, from Kent, is the only outstanding member of the group still on the run.

Others jailed as part of the operation were: Jack Lee 35, of Welling, Gareth Morris 58, from Greenwich, Lee Willetts 31, of Pembroke Road, Greenford. Matthew O’Brien, 34, of Northdown Close, Ruislip Gardens, Georgie Norris 23, of Burnham Way, Hanwell, Mark Breagan, 41, of Ruislip Road East, Hanwell, and Alfie Whitbread 23, of Cambridge Road, Hanwell.