Essex rapper B-Levelz jailed for drug dealing
He's been sentenced to more than 5 years in prison after using his music to brag about selling drugs
Last updated 25th Jan 2022
An Essex rapper is to spend the next five years in prison after admitting to his involvement in an operation selling Class A drugs in Basildon.
Olusogo Ajewole, who performs under the name B-Levelz, wears a mask in his music videos and uses his lyrics to talk explicitely about organised crime.
The 33 year old, of Caspian Way in Purfleet, was arrested as part of a five month investigation by Essex Police.
Officers raided a number of addresses in Basildon, Vange and Purfleet in December 2020. Ajewole's home and recording studio in Vange Park Road were among the properties targeted.
Digital scales and crack cocaine with a street value of around £5,600 were found at his house. Around £3,000 in cash was also seized, along with the mask used in B-Levelz' videos.
Ajewole admitted conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin when he appeared at Basildon Crown Court on 1 April, 2021.
He was jailed for five years and eight months on Friday, 21 January.
Shane Butcher, 20, of Chevers Pawen, in Basildon, was handed a suspended jail sentence after being found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Detective Inspector Scott Fitzmaurice, Essex Police, said:
“Ajewole was literally caught in the act and the evidence we had compiled against him over the course of five months of investigation meant he had no opportunity but to plead guilty.
“He ran the H line, with Butcher and McCormack as his trusted associates, and employed runners to sell the drugs to customers.
“Ajewole glorified the lifestyle of a drug dealer in his music videos, bragging about selling drugs and making money, and using young boys to sell drugs.
“But the truth is there is nothing glamorous about drug dealing and what he describes in those videos is exploitation of children, needless violence, and the selfish pursuit of making money off the back of other people’s misery.”