R v Kamaljit Singh Chahal & Anor
[2024] EWCA Crim 466
R v John Allcock & Anor
5 September 2023
[2023] EWCA Crim 1010
Court of Appeal
Two guys were caught running a huge drug operation. Even though there were problems with the police investigation, the court said the evidence was enough to convict them, and their sentences were fair.
Key Facts
- •John Allcock (JA) and Carl McAlindon (CM) convicted of conspiracy to supply Class A and B drugs.
- •JA also convicted of converting criminal property; CM convicted of possessing criminal property.
- •JA sentenced to 21 years, CM to 13 years imprisonment.
- •Appeals against conviction and (JA only) sentence.
- •Case involved two organised crime groups supplying cocaine and amphetamine.
- •Evidence included guilty pleas of co-defendants, drug seizures, phone and cell site evidence, observation evidence, DNA evidence, EncroChat material, and financial evidence.
- •Defence challenged phone attribution, police investigation integrity, and reliability of evidence.
- •Issues with late disclosure of evidence, police misconduct (DS Malcolm plagiarising report), and potential expert witness influence.
- •Jury issues: one juror discharged due to illness, another briefly upset.
- •EncroChat evidence admitted as bad character evidence for JA, but not CM.
Legal Principles
Admissibility of bad character evidence.
R v A, B, D and C [2021] EWCA Crim 128; R v A & Others EWCA Crim 1447
Inconsistency of jury verdicts.
Longman and Cribben (1981) 72 Cr. App. R. 121
Standard of proof in criminal cases.
Abuse of process.
Section 78 PACE 1984 (exclusion of evidence).
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984
Good character direction.
Hunter (Nigel) & others [2015] EWCA Crim 631
Sentencing guidelines for drug offences.
Sentencing Council guidelines
Section 33 Sentencing Act 2020 (pre-sentence reports).
Sentencing Act 2020
Outcomes
Appeals against conviction dismissed.
No merit found in grounds of appeal; despite various issues, the trial remained fair.
Appeal against sentence (JA) dismissed.
Sentence of 21 years not manifestly excessive given JA's leading role and the scale of the operation.