Essex drugs gang enforcer and debt collector jailed

Peter Cordwell, who has a history of violence, was jailed yesterday for 11 years and six months after admitting being concerned in the supply of cocaine and amphetamine.

The charges he admitted covered at least 32 kilos of cocaine with a street value of around £2.5million and 90 kilos of amphetamine.

Cordwell, 49, was known in the criminal world as an enforcer and debt collector for drugs gang in Essex.

Warren Smith, 40, of Stanford Rivers Road, Ongar, was also jailed (Image: National Crime Agency)

In 1998 the 6ft 4in tall man was convicted of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and in 2014 found guilty of battery.

He has been jailed at Snaresbrook Crown Court, in London, over drugs deals he conducted on the encrypted communications platform EncroChat, where he was known as "Mightyjedi".

He was caught as part of the National Crime Agency-led Operation Venetic, the UK law enforcement response to the takedown of EncroChat in 2020.

Cordwell lived in a private gated community in Hazel Lane, Ilford, and had a vast array of specialist security features fitted in his home.

His messages show, between November 2019 and August 2020, he was involved in the supply of multi-kilo amounts of high purity cocaine.

In one of his EncroChat exchanges he told his contact he had to collect £112,000 from a customer for the “last 4 tops”, meaning four kilos of cocaine.

In another, he speaks of supplying cocaine at more than 80 per cent purity.

Cordwell was arrested on August 9 2022. He was interviewed four times and answered “no comment” to all questions asked.

National Crime Agency operations manager Dean Wallbank said: “By dismantling Cordwell’s crime group, we have put an end to the harm it was bringing to UK streets.

“These men were supplying substantial quantities of Class A drugs across Essex, and further afield as far as Cornwall.

“As well as organising drug deals, Cordwell was known as a feared criminal enforcer in Essex.

“The NCA works in the UK and around the world to fight the class A drugs threat and protect the public from its impact.”

Two of Cordwell’s organised crime group members were also jailed today.

Warren Smith, 40, of Stanford Rivers Road, Ongar, operated as ‘Skiplorry’ on EncroChat.

He admitted conspiring to import cocaine, and being concerned in the supply of 58 kilos of cocaine and around 200 kilos of cannabis. He was sentenced to 13 years and five months.

Fellow crime group member Mustafa Ismail, 44, of Roycroft Close, Gordon Road, north east London, was sentenced to 14 years and five months after admitting conspiring to import cannabis (272 kilos) and being concerned in the supply of cocaine (27 kilos) and MDMA (25 kilos and 10,000 tablets).