One of UK's most wanted admits to drug offences after years on the run
Alex Male, 32, from Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, has admitted to conspiring to supply drugs across the southwest of England, following four years on the run. Male, once listed among England’s most wanted, pleaded guilty at Exeter Crown Court to conspiring with others to distribute cocaine and ketamine in 2020 and to transferring criminal property in July of the same year.
Male was apprehended in Morocco in January 2024, after attempting to enter the country using a fake passport. He had previously evaded capture for several years, having skipped bail in December 2020 and reportedly fled to Spain.
Investigators had linked Male to a large-scale drug distribution network, which allegedly relied on encrypted communication platforms to coordinate illicit operations across the region, and will be sentenced on October 18, 2024.
In addition to his guilty pleas, Male denied two charges relating to the acquisition of firearms and ammunition. These charges were dropped, and his defence barrister, Rebecca Austin, confirmed that the Crown accepted his guilty pleas, allowing the remaining charges to "lie on the file."
Male had been on the run since December 2020, after fleeing to Spain to avoid facing justice. He was believed to be hiding in the Marbella area of Costa del Sol. He first drew authorities' attention when he was held at Lisbon Airport in May 2022, after flying from Istanbul. However, due to the expiry of his custody time limit in Portugal, Male was released. He continued to evade capture until his arrest in Morocco earlier this year.
Male’s case is linked to that of Joshua Hendry, a convicted drug trafficker from Liverpool, who was arrested in Marbella shortly after Male’s addition to the National Crime Agency's most wanted list in January 2022. Hendry was extradited and sentenced to five years and three months for drug trafficking and absconding, adding to a 10-year sentence he had previously received in 2020.
