A drug dealer has been jailed for four-and-a-half years after the death of a 20-year-old Indian-origin University of Cambridge student in 2021.
Benjamin Brown, 32, was tracked down after police found Keshava Iyengar dead in a friend’s room at the Trinity College, Cambridge University, on March 13, 2021.
A coroner’s report later concluded the student’s death was drug-related and the police investigation uncovered messages on his phone from a drug dealer called “Lean Xan Man”.
The dealer described himself as a “pharmacist” selling a variety of prescription-only drugs through Instagram and Snapchat.
Officers identified Lean Xan Man as Brown of Byrefield Road, Guildford, Surrey.
He was arrested on July 27, 2021, and a search of his home uncovered drugs, more than 15,000 pounds in cash and sticky labels with his “business logo”.
“Brown was running a huge operation from his bedroom in Surrey, which had tragic consequences,” said detective constable Dan Harper from Cambridgeshire Police, who investigated the case.
“It is not possible to prove that Brown’s actions caused the death of Keshava, but you can say with certainty that drugs ruin lives and there is a reason why some can only be prescribed by a medical professional. This is why it continues to be a priority for police in Cambridgeshire,” Harper added.
At Huntingdon Law Courts last week, Brown pleaded guilty to two counts of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs, two counts in the supply of class C, one count in the supply of class B, possession of class A and possession with intent to supply class C.
The judge described Brown’s drug dealing business as “substantial, sophisticated and lucrative”.
He said that through greed he had “profited from the vulnerabilities of others dependent on prescription medication for conditions such as anxiety”.
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