A man who imported more than 500 litres of the potentially lethal “date rape” drug GBL has been jailed for 11 years.
The Metropolitan Police spent four years building a case against Afshin Alikhani after he brought in industrial quantities of the substance, a central nervous system depressant often placed in alcoholic drinks.
Incorrect dosage of GBL can be fatal, and it can be weaponised by perpetrators – leaving victims susceptible to sexual assault and rape.
After being arrested following an in-depth surveillance operation, the 43-year-old, of Abbey Road, London, repeatedly denied his involvement – even though officers found phones in his apartment showing his planned distribution to buyers.
However, in August he was found guilty by a jury at Harrow Crown Court on all counts of importation of class C drugs.
His sentence at London’s Old Bailey did not occur until earlier this month due to the legal complexity of assessing the harm that GBL causes.
Det Sgt Isabella Grotto, who led the case, said: “Alikhani’s conviction is a signal to others that the supply of this drug is taken extremely seriously, and we will pursue those who distribute GBL to Londoners.
“We worked long and hard with multiple different teams and gathered expert advice from specialists to ensure we could prove the seriousness of the importation of this drug and its detrimental impact on victims.”
Det Insp Louise Houtmeyers, the senior investigating officer in the case, said: “This is a first-of-its-kind case for the Met. Alikhani was not only importing this dangerous drug, but was attempting to distribute a huge volume to victims across London – he intended to profit off an extremely harmful and illegal substance.
“GBL is highly addictive and can be fatal. There is an emerging trend of this drug being used more frequently, particularly by men who have sex with men, and during chemsex.
“This is often deemed a taboo subject, but this conviction is about raising awareness of the impact of GBL and its associated dangers, not criminalising or ostracising people who might be using it.
“We are determined to protect all London communities and believe the sentencing demonstrates the seriousness and potential harm 500 litres of GBL could have had.”
