Bakar Ranian, 45, caught with drugs in BMW in Harrogate

Bakar Ranian, 45, was jailed by York Crown Court on December 5 after pleading guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to supply. He was jailed for two years and two months.

On November 11, officers on patrol in and around Harrogate spotted a vehicle that had been making regular trips between Leeds and Harrogate.

North Yorkshire Police said the trips were "consistent with an organised crime group involved in the supply of class A drugs".

Officers from the force’s Operation Expedite Team stopped the vehicle, a BMW 1 series, in Harrogate and asked the driver to explain his movements.

Driver Ranian, originally from Hackney in London, but who had recently moved to Conway Grove, Harehills, Leeds, gave an account that was "implausible and vague", police said.

A police spokesperson said: "Ranian was detained for a search under the Misuse of Drugs Act, as was his vehicle. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply cocaine after officers found drugs on him following the search."

Police officers recovered 109 Packages of cocaine and four bags of MDMA with a combined street value of approximately £5,000. Picture: North Yorkshire Police

The spokesperson said a search of Ranian's vehicle led to officers finding £100 in cash and a large quantity of suspected class A drugs, all concealed in various compartments of the vehicle in snap bags.

Police then conducted a search of his address where around £2,000 cash was found and further evidence of drug dealing, the spokesperson said.

In total, officers recovered 109 packages of cocaine and four bags of MDMA with a combined street value of around £5,000, the force added.

PC Michael Haydock, of Operation Expedite, who led the investigation, said: “Bakar Ranian was working for a county line with the sole objective of selling highly dangerous and addictive drugs on the streets of Harrogate.

“He has knowingly broken the law and has clearly made a significant financial gain from his criminal activity. This has now been taken away from him. He, like many others before him, have sold these drugs without the slightest bit of thought or consideration for the wider implications of their actions.

“I am pleased to see that he has been imprisoned for his crimes and hopefully, he will now see the error of his ways. Similarly, anyone who believes they can commit drug crime in North Yorkshire should see this as a warning that drug dealers will be pursued and sent to prison.”