BRAHMBHATT:LAWYER SMUGGLED DRUGS INTO JAIL INSIDE HIS HUGE SHOES

A crooked solicitor smuggled drugs and phones into a prison in his hugely oversized shoes, a court heard today (Thurs).

Ritesh Brahmbhatt, 31, was caught with three inch packages containing skunk, the illegal stimulant ‘Meow Meow’ and even electronic scales inside his size 12 wide-fitting shoes, jurors heard.

The shoes were at least three sizes two big for the lawyer.

Blackfriars Crown Court heard he was planning to pass the contraband to inmate David Sterling, 28, who was wearing a full Muslim robe to receive the banned items at Pentonville jail in north London.

The items would have been used to fuel a black market prison trade which could have been worth thousands of pounds.

Sterling and fellow prisoner Desmond Brown, 26, are accused of a conspiracy to smuggle drugs and phones into HMP Pentonville between 1 March and 18 September 2009.

They are standing trial alongside Brown’s girlfriend Danielle Porter, 24, and friend Calvin Chance, 26, who are said to have helped run the scheme from the outside.

Brahmbhatt is not before the court.

Rufuz D’Cruz, prosecuting, said: ‘Ritesh Brahmbhatt entered into a crude criminal conspiracy to smuggle prohibited items into prison with his clients, Sterling and Brown, who at that time were serving prisoners, and Chance and Porter.

‘Over that six month period in 2009, Brahmbhatt, Chance and Porter worked on the outside, covertly conveying into prison drugs, mobile phones and mobile phone parts, during the course of a series of visits to both Sterling and Brown.’

Brahmbhatt, who worked for Holloway law firm Mordi and Co, had ‘abused his position of trust’ as a lawyer to use legal visits to bring in items in return for cash bungs, the court heard.

‘He chose to routinely undermine the rule of law rather than uphold it,’ said Mr D’Cruz.

Mobile phones can fetch up to £1,000 each, and are likely to be used to commit further offences he said, while drugs also have a hugely inflated value.

‘Sterling and Brown would in turn have used these items themselves, but also sold them in the black market that operates in prison,’ he said.

‘The conveying of these items in prison therefore provides serving prisoners such as Sterling and Brown with the opportunity to make a criminal profit in prison.’

They were caught out after prison officer Lucy McLaren raised suspicions about the frequency of Brahmbhatt’s legal meetings.

She arranged to have sniffer dogs checking visitors during one of his booked appointments, and he was tested after two dogs separately smelled drugs on him.

Sterling was waiting for the appointment inside the prison wearing a full length Muslim robe, the court heard.

‘The first thing that he said to the prison officer was that he wanted to keep his Muslim clothing on for the legal visit,’ said Mr D’Cruz.

Sterling added that he was ‘only going to be five minutes’ – an unusually short time for a legal conference.

When Brahmbhatt was searched, prison officers found he was wearing wide-fitting size twelve shoes that were over a foot long and at least three sizes too large for him.

He had bought the footwear days before in a branch of High and Mighty, which specialises in outsize menswear, jurors heard.

In the right shoe, they found a clingfilm package containing a mobile phone, earphones and accessories, a pair of electronic scales and a small quantity of mephedrone, commonly known as
Meow Meow.

A second package containing 25 grams of skunk cannabis was found in his left shoe,

Officers also found 27grammes of skunk and 53grammes of cannabis in his trousers.

Brahmbhatt admitted that he had more items in his locker, where prison officers found two mobile phones, and £300 in cash.

‘The prosecution believe that sum represented Mr Brahmbhatt’s payment for his part in this stage of the conspiracy,’ said Mr D’Cruz.

An investigation later found the solicitor had the phone numbers for the defendants on his mobile phone.

Sim cards were also seized from both Sterling and Brown in prison.

Sterling, of (11) Mallory Close and Brown, of (59) John Walsh Tower, Montague Rd, both Bromley-by-Bow, east London, Porter, of (12) Saltern Court, Barking, Essex, and Chance, of 36 Birch Grove, Leytonstone, east London, all deny two charges of conspiracy to convey articles including drugs, mobile phones and components into prison.

Brahmbhatt, of Wanstead Park Road, Ilford, is not before the court.

The trial continues.
ends