Man jailed for 12 years after thousands of litres of date rape drug found in storage

A man has been jailed for 12 years after more than 2,000 litres of gamma butyrolactone (GBL), a date rape drug, were found in a storage container rented by him, police have said.

Metropolitan Police officers found 2,256 litres of GBL - equivalent to 10 bathtubs - in 188 boxes containing one-litre bottles in a storage container rented by Ahoor Ramabark Fathi.

Fathi, 61, was arrested in March following an investigation into the transportation of (GBL) from Manchester to London, as well as the supply of crystal meth from London to Manchester.

Investigators, who used phone data to establish Fathi's involvement, then searched a rented storage container where they found the GBL.

At one of three addresses linked to Fathi - two in Ealing, and one in Southall - officers also found a firearm, ammunition, £100,000 in cash and 456g of crystal meth.

Fathi, of Willowbrook Road, Southall, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs, possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of criminal property at Isleworth Crown Court on April 17.

He was sentenced at the same court last week.

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It was one of the largest seizures of GBL in London, the force said. GBL - an odourless, oily liquid, usually sold in small bottles or capsules - can lead to a comatose state and memory loss and is linked to spiking.

Detective Inspector Mark Gavin, who led the investigation, said the haul "represents one of the largest quantities of GBL recovered in London and has prevented a substantial amount of the drug from reaching our streets".

"GBL and crystal meth are frequently associated with serious offences," he said.

According to the NHS, the difference between a high and an overdose, where the drug causes unresponsiveness and unconsciousness, on GBL can be less than one millilitre.

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