A North Yorkshire man who ran an illegal online pharmacy has been jailed for 10 years and six months.
36-year-old Tarik Adam Mehmet Turan, from Eastfield in Scarborough, was sentenced today (24 April) at York Crown Court.
The sentence follows Turan previously pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of a variety of controlled Class A to Class C drugs over a year.
He was also convicted of possession of criminal property regarding £280,000, that he could not account for being paid into his various bank accounts.
Turan had established a lucrative business supplying both prescription and recreational drugs online.
He used a Whatsapp group named UK Pharmacy2U to do so, and referred to himself as ‘Dr T’.
The Whatsapp group had members spread across the whole of the UK who would contact Turan for a variety of drugs ranging from diazepam to cocaine.
He would post extensive price lists of drugs to the group, allowing customers to contact him and purchase what they chose. Customers would pay money to Turan in a variety of ways.
Turan acted as the ‘middleman’ taking orders and arranging delivery, therefore never getting hands-on or coming into contact with the drugs he was supplying.
He acted as an unofficial pharmacist and had customers asking his advice about what the best ‘medication’ was for them.
Despite having no medical training, Turan would offer guidance on the best drugs to take and would then happily take payment and supply amounts far outweighing clinically safe doses.
His activities were identified following the arrests of individuals who were purchasing drugs from him.
Mobile phone seizures resulted in the police getting sight of Turan’s WhatsApp group and the messages being exchanged.
He was arrested near to his home address on 11 May 2023. His phone was seized, and officers gained access which showed the full extent of Turan’s criminal enterprise.
It showed him making sales from Scotland to the south coast of England.
Turan provided no account to the police across two interviews.
He was eventually charged in April 2024 with 33 offences of being concerned in the supply of controlled drugs ranging from class A to Class C and possession of criminal property.
Investigating officer, DC Darrel Temple of Scarborough CID, said:
“The sentence handed down to Turan is a clear message that drug dealing will not be tolerated and that, eventually, those involved will face serious consequences.
“Turan thought he was safe operating an online business of supplying every drug you could imagine and making vast profits from it.
“His operation covered the whole country, and he was actively supplying medication that should only be prescribed by a qualified medical professional. Turan is anything but this.
“Taking illegal prescription drugs is dangerous and they contribute to a high number of drug deaths throughout the UK each year.
“Turan was fuelling this problem with his actions and has rightly been punished.
“It is apparent from the way Turan operated that he has a sufficient skill set to run a successful business.
“He now has time in prison to hopefully reflect on this and put his skills to better and law-abiding use when released.”