Exeter Uni IT technician jailed for selling drugs to students

Obaid Asif, an IT technician at the University of Exeter, has been jailed for two years and eight months for selling drugs to students.

29-year-old Asif had been working at St Luke's campus as an IT enterprise support officer since May 2017.

He was working on a short term contract that was due to expire in August 2018. However, he was arrested one month before his time with the university was up.

On July 10th 2018, police stopped Asif for driving erratically in a black Mercedes, on Heavitree Road. A small amount of cannabis and £50 to £100 of cocaine was found in the car.

Messages on a Nokia phone were also discovered that proved he was supplying both drugs and a search of his home found there to be scales which had traces of drugs on them.

At Exeter Crown Court, Miss Felicity Payne, prosecuting, said: "His dealing to individuals is thought to include university students on the campus where he worked.

"The evidence of his phone shows he was canvassing for business and running his own mini-enterprise, including selling to students."

Asif denies selling to students and says that he met the majority of his customers in Belmont Park in Exeter.

Miss Chloe Griggs, defending, explained that Asif had made the foolish decision to sell drugs, after taking out a £7,000 loan with a high interest rate.

Asif took out the loan to help him pay the rent of his Exeter home on Belmont Road, but was struggling to keep up with the repayments.

Miss Griggs added Asif had worked hard to get a good education, as he had been awarded a first class degree in computer studies from Kingston University, and had never been in trouble before.

Judge Peter Johnson sentenced Obaid Asif after he pleaded guilty to supplying cocaine and cannabis and the personal possession of both drugs.