A businessman who used his specialist knowledge to help criminals produce thousands of dangerous illegal drugs has been jailed for 13 years, following a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation.

Sebastiano Sorrenti, 35, of Swindon was known to criminal associates as “Machine Guy” because he gave them industrial pill presses.

He also sold associates large batches of Class A and C drugs.

The NCA began its enquiries in 2021 following the conviction of Kyle Byrne, 33, of Paisley, for drug offences investigated by Police Scotland.

In 2020, Police Scotland recovered pill presses which Byrne’s organised crime group used to produce Etizolam, a Class C drug which in the same year was a factor in more than 800 drug-related deaths in Scotland.

It was evident from WhatsApp messages on Byrne’s phone that the equipment had been provided by a contact saved under the name “Machine Guy”.

NCA officers were able to attribute the number for « Machine Guy » to Sorrenti, who ran a company that supplied equipment to legitimate pharmaceutical businesses.

In June 2022, NCA officers, assisted by Wiltshire Police, arrested Sorrenti at his home. They recovered pill press stamps, Scottish banknotes and tablets containing Etizolam and MDMA.

The stamps helped prove Sorrenti provided Byrne’s group with equipment because their designs – imitations of the WhatsApp and Snapchat logos – matched branding on pills recovered by Police Scotland.

Sorrenti also sent Byrne messages discussing delivery of equipment and advice on fixing a malfunctioning press.

His service to the organised crime group extended to giving guidance on making Etizolam pills, including sending Byrne a recipe to make 140,000 tablets.

Photos shared by the co-conspirators indicate the group’s criminal dealings were lucrative.

NCA drugs experts assessed a single haul of MDMA in one picture to be worth more than £600,000. In another exchange, Byrne sent Sorrenti a picture of a quad bike which was to be part payment for drugs.

Among more than 4,000 messages examined by investigators, Sorrenti discussed evading police detection, little realising that his communications would ultimately lead the NCA to him.

Despite the overwhelming evidence against him, Sorrenti denied supplying drugs to criminals in Scotland. He claimed his phone number had been spoofed, however a forensic examination of the phone by NCA officers found no evidence of spoofing.

Furthermore, cell site data retrieved by the investigation team proved Sorrenti had made numerous trips to Scotland on dates correlating with messages arranging collection and delivery of illicit goods.

Subsequently, Sorrenti today (1 November) pleaded guilty to all the charges against him and was sentenced immediately afterwards.

NCA Lead Investigator Rory Duffin said:

“The NCA investigation found Sorrenti was providing criminals with professional-standard customer service, supplying equipment, ingredients and instructions to create hundreds of thousands of potentially fatal drugs, and troubleshooting problems that arose.

“Working with Police Scotland, we’ve ensured that Sorrenti, who played a critical role for a number of organised criminals, is now in jail.”

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