Two county lines drug dealers who were operating in Welwyn Hatfield and carried a saw-off shotgun have been jailed for more than 10 years.

Erasta Muaka, 28, of Solomon Way, Tower Hamlets, controlled one of the four lines and was jailed for four years after admitting his involvement in a conspiracy to supply cocaine and heroin.

Kamal Hussun, 23, of Southgate Road, Islington, acted as a drug runner and admitted the same charge.

He also pleaded guilty to possession of a sawn-off shot gun and was sentenced to a total of six-and-a-half years behind bars.

Both appeared at St Albans Crown Court, who heard that the line had been operational from September 10 to December 15, 2020, with prosecutor Peter Shaw describing Muaka as the “line holder who was aware of the extent of the operation and sent out foot soldiers to provide drugs”.

He was caught when the phone numbers used as part of the county line operation were linked to his address in London, while the phone was also tracked as he drove around in his white BMW.

Hussun, meanwhile, acted as a professional drug runner for the line, and was captured on CCTV dealing drugs to an undercover police officer.

In July 2020, his DNA was found on a sawn-off shotgun hidden in a bush outside the communal area of flats in London, but Graeme Logan, defending, said Hussun had been shown the gun and looked at it out of curiosity, holding it for no longer than a few minutes.

He also added that Hussun, who was not vulnerable nor an addict, had sold drugs for less than three months and was not involved in the recruitment or control of others.

Defending Muaka, Leon-Nathan Lynch said the line he ran was only active for 10 days and that he wanted to get on with his life running an art gallery.

Sentencing the pair, judge Richard Foster told Hassun that those in possession of a firearm face a minimum five-year jail sentence, and that he had played a significant role in the conspiracy, on one occasion receiving 30 calls in a day.

He also told Muaka that he had played a significant role despite having only just been released from a three-year sentence at the time.