Major suppliers of drugs on the dark web jailed

Two men have been sentenced following an investigation by the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU), working in partnership with UK and international law enforcement agencies. 

The dark web vendor named UKWhite, was estimated to have supplied more than 28 kilos of high‑purity cocaine globally and generated millions in illegal revenue over a period of 14 months. 

Two men behind UKWhite were found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to supply cocaine and three counts of possessing a class C drug with intent to supply (namely diazepam, clonazolam and flubromazolam) by a jury at Bristol Crown Court on Thursday (19 Feb) last week.  

Lucas Costa, 40, of Rotherhithe Street, London, was sentenced to 14 years and Bruno Teles, 43, of Heather Road, Dollis Hill, London, was sentenced to 12 years on Friday (20 Feb). 

Helio Delfini, 43, also of Rotherhithe Street, pleaded guilty to his involvement in the conspiracy in March last year and will be sentenced at Bristol Crown Court on 10 March 2026.  

UKWhite operated across multiple dark web marketplaces – using sophisticated anonymity tools such as private web browsers, encrypted communications and cryptocurrency‑based payments.  

Buyers from across the world purchased cocaine in quantities ranging from half‑gram deals to 100‑gram or more bulk orders, posted from the UK. 

During warrants carried out in London in October 2021, SWROCU officers seized 2.5 kilos of high purity cocaine, 6,356 class C prescription-only ‘benzos’ tablets, packaging supplies, an adapted suitcase, £17,440 in cash and around £67,000 in cryptocurrency. 

DI Ross Flay of SWROCU said: “These men were running a sophisticated dark web drug supply network from their home addresses in London by exploiting anonymising technology and using global postal systems.  

“Through painstaking forensic work, digital investigation and international cooperation, we have removed a major threat from the online criminal marketplace.”

L-R: Lucas Costa, Bruno Teles