Dymchurch drug dealer ordered to surrender £31,144 profits
Court confiscates thousands made from cocaine sales
Sami Hanbali has been ordered to surrender £31,144, the profits from his illegal drug trade, after being caught selling cocaine in a Dymchurch car park.
The order follows a Proceeds of Crime Act investigation by Kent Police after Hanbali was jailed for dealing class A drugs.
On the morning of 14th June 2025, Hanbali travelled to car parks in the New Romney and Dymchurch areas to sell cocaine hidden in a secret compartment of his vehicle.
A plain clothes officer observed a number of individuals making brief visits to Hanbali’s car, leading to his arrest in a car park on Orgarswick Avenue.
Upon searching Hanbali's car, officers found a carrier bag containing drugs behind the radio in the central console, including a six-ounce block of cocaine valued at £12,000.
Additional items confiscated included cash and mobile phones.
Further searches at Hanbali’s guesthouse revealed £26,000 in cash within a safe.
Charged with possession of cocaine with intent to supply and money laundering, Hanbali, then 25, admitted the charges in July 2025 and was sentenced to 36 months behind bars the following month.
Kent Police applied for the confiscation of money made by Hanbali through drug dealing using powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
The Act allows for confiscating money and assets gained from criminal activities, and can be used again if new assets are obtained by the offender.
On 13th February 2026, Canterbury Crown Court ordered Hanbali, now residing in East Sussex, to pay the amount in full within three months or face additional time behind bars.
Detective Inspector David Godfrey highlighted the importance of stripping criminals of illegal earnings.
“Drug dealers can make a lot of money off the misery of others and it is only right that they do not get to keep and enjoy their ill-gotten gains.
"The Proceeds of Crime Act is a vital tool in tackling organised crime, as it enables us to stop that, as well as disrupting the criminal in their illegal activities. Some of the money recovered at court will now be put back into our communities to help improve the service we give to the people of Kent,” DI Godfrey said.