Ruthless drug dealers are targeting vulnerable young students at some of Britain’s top universities by brazenly handing out professional business cards on campuses – while police appear to turn a blind eye.
Students, many of whom are living away from home for the first time, are given instant access to Class A drugs – including cocaine, MDMA and ketamine – simply by calling mobile phone numbers printed on slick flyers.
A disturbing Mail on Sunday investigation at four of Britain’s leading universities found:
Leeds University: After our reporter rang the number on a business card for 'Jaye' (pictured below), this man (pictured above) arrived to sell him MDMA - even throwing in a gram for free
Special offer: 'Jaye's' drug-dealing business card
Our troubling probe comes after a recent survey found 62 per cent of students thought that their university should take ‘a stronger line’ on ‘students who repeatedly use drugs’.
Another survey found 56 per cent of students have admitted to taking drugs, but the National Union of Students last year called on universities not to inform police about students caught using illegal substances to avoid them getting a criminal record.
The Mail on Sunday was alerted to the sinister presence of brazen drug dealers handing out their business cards to students at the University of Leeds, the University of Manchester, the University of Nottingham, and Queen Mary University of London.
Last night, police said they were investigating the use of business cards by dealers, while an MP called for a government task force to tackle the problem.
Nottingham University: This man (pictured above) arrived after our investigator contacted the number listed on the card pictured below
Party trick: The dealer sold him two grams of ketamine for £50, promising it was 'good stuff'
It comes after students told this newspaper they had been handed flyers by drug dealers at events during Freshers’ Week at the start of the academic year.
The cards obtained by this newspaper are often disguised as offering legitimate services, such as catering and fitness training.
But when they are handed out to students by the dealers they are told that if they call the phone number printed they can buy drugs that can be delivered within minutes. One card with an image of a balloon simply advertised ‘party essentials’. Another offered a ‘buy 1 get 1 free’ deal on Tuesdays.
When our reporter, posing as a student, rang the numbers on the cards he was able to buy cocaine, party drug MDMA and powerful tranquilliser ketamine – all of which have caused the deaths of young students in recent years.
Among the business cards handed out by drug dealers to students, ‘Jay’ (pictured below) entices students in Leeds with a free sample of cannabis.
A business card from a Leeds drug dealer with a free sample of cannabis
In Manchester, ‘Ricky’, offers a gram of synthetic drug mephedrone (mcat) for £10 or seven grams for £50 with a ‘buy-one-get-one-free’ offer on Tuesdays.
Ricky’, offers a gram of synthetic drug mephedrone (mcat) for £10
He also sells cocaine (charley) for £40 a gram or three grams for £100, a gram of MDMA (md) for £25 and an eighth of an ounce of cannabis (green) for £20 or three-eighths for £50.
Our investigation began at the University of Leeds, which has more than 27,000 undergraduates, and was recently ranked in the top ten universities in the UK.
Famous alumni include former Home Secretary Jack Straw. A recent survey by student newspaper The Tab found 90 per cent of students in the city admitted to taking drugs.
In 2014, Leeds law and French student Natasha Brunton, 21, was found dead after taking cocaine.
One current student passed our reporter a business card he said a dealer had handed to him in the popular student area of Hyde Park at the start of term. The card for dealer ‘Jaye’ promised ‘special offers’ delivered from noon until 2am.
Within 30 minutes of phoning the number on the card, a young bearded man arrived in a black Mercedes 4x4 to meet our reporter. A DVLA check of the car’s number plate later revealed it had not been taxed.
The man sold our reporter eight grams of MDMA for £100. He even decided to throw an extra gram in for free.
The pusher said: ‘It’s banging bro, absolutely banging. I’ve got coke, MD and pills… If you got any mates give them my number and I will sort them out with the best deals.’
A drugs laboratory test later confirmed it was MDMA. The Class A drug – which can land someone up to seven years in prison for possession – is the active ingredient in ecstasy pills, and has been implicated in the deaths of hundreds of people in the UK.
In 2017, Sheffield student Joana Burns, 22, died after taking MDMA to celebrate finishing her maths degree.
Last night, a source close to her family told The Mail on Sunday: ‘Handing out business cards almost legitimises drug taking for students. It just shows how out of control it has become.’
Queen Mary University: This driver of a £50,000 Mercedes arrived after our reporter rang the number on a business card (below) for 'Rico'
Brazen: He charged £40 for a gram of MDMA - which tests later to be of very high purity
In Leeds, we arranged to meet another dealer – ‘Jayce’. On the back of the card it read: ‘Professional chef. For the best deals… thank me later!’
Within an hour of calling the mobile number on the card, a man, who appeared in his late teens, arrived and offered us two types of cocaine – different strengths for different prices.
We bought the more expensive option, paying £150 for two grams which tests
