Canterbury drug dealer sentenced to over two years in prison

A drug dealer from Canterbury has been sentenced to more than two years in prison after officers discovered over 300 wraps of cocaine.

On Thursday 9 October 2025, officers from Canterbury’s Neighbourhood Task Force were patrolling a known drug hotspot in Brymore Road when they identified Renato Selmai acting suspiciously outside an address.

Selmai responded to officers’ questions and claimed multiple times that he had no drugs. However, he became increasingly agitated and attempted to flee but was detained within seconds.

He was placed in handcuffs, and a search revealed two sealed packets containing suspected Class A drugs, a Nokia burner phone, an iPhone and £80 in cash. Inside the sealed packets, officers found numerous smaller wraps of drugs in black and white packaging.

Drugs found 

Selmai was arrested at the scene on suspicion of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs. During a search of his home address in Brymore Road, a further large quantity of suspected Class A drugs, estimated at the time to be around 300 wraps, was discovered along with approximately £2,000 in cash and a set of weighing scales with white powder residue.

During police interview, Selmai claimed he had been forced into drug dealing due to debts owed by his family in Albania. He also stated he did not know what type of drugs he had been carrying and could not provide any names of those allegedly coercing him, claiming it would put him at risk.

Selmai was remanded in custody, and an investigation was launched. A manual phone review of the Nokia revealed multiple messages consistent with drug dealing, including phrases such as ‘online new stuff bang bang, ’online Ronnie,’ and ‘happy hour best on both,’ sent to numerous unsaved contacts.

The wraps of suspected drugs were sent off for testing and were confirmed to be cocaine.

Sentenced

He appeared before Margate Magistrates' Court the day after his arrest where he pled guilty to the charges put to him. He was remanded in custody by the court, and on Thursday 19 February 2026, Selmai, 18, was sentenced to two years and four months’ imprisonment at Canterbury Crown Court.

Detective Constable Tom Dempster said:

‘Drug dealing is a blight on the local community, and I welcome this, and any, result that takes drugs and those who supply them off our streets. The sentence handed down sends a clear message that we will continue to push for the harshest possible outcomes for those who profit from harm. ‘I also wanted to praise the intervention of Neighbourhood Task Force officers, whose local knowledge and quick actions prevented a significant quantity of drugs from reaching our community.'