Drug dealer who escaped during Waterloo station stop and search jailed

A drug dealer who fled police during a stop and search when they found he had £700 worth of drugs and more than £3,000 cash at Waterloo station has finally been caught and jailed for 37 months.

Kyle Manikiza, 20 of no fixed address, was searched by plain clothes officers at the busy train station in March and they found 18 MDMA tablets, cocaine and 118 Etizolam tablets in his bag, as well as £3,230 cash .

However, as police went to remove his bag during the search Manikiza managed to run off.

After months of enquiries he was arrested on September 21, when he was found with another £1,660 in cash and a knife .

Detective Constable Keef Cook said: ‘"We will not tolerate drugs or knives on the railway, the custodial sentence handed down by the court proves we will take offences seriously and bring the perpetrators to justice.

"The hard work of officers involved in this case has meant we were able to take a drug dealer, and their weapon, off the railway network and the streets.

"We are working tirelessly to stop criminals like Manikiza operating and I hope his sentence will act as a deterrent to those thinking of selling drugs or carrying knives."

Etizolam is a benzodiazepine or "benzo" drug, like Xanax, which is used to treat anxiety or insomnia in countries such as India but is illegal in the UK and can be highly addictive.

Manikiza pleaded guilty at Blackfriars Crown Court on October 26 to two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, possession with intent to supply a Class C drug, two counts of money laundering and possession of a bladed article. He was jailed on the same day.