A CONVICTED drug dealer has been sentenced to a further five years in jail after a firearm was found during a warrant.

Police carried out a raid in Tipton at the address of Simon Malhi where officers found a 9mm pistol concealed within a manbag under his bed back in December 2021.

Officers also recovered five rounds of ammunition and cannabis.

It was revealed that Gurvinder Dari had given the manbag containing the firearm to Malhi.

After a subsequent search of Dari's address, a large amount of class A drugs and cash were found and a large-scale drug dealing operation was discovered.

Along with associates, Dari was sentenced to 12 years for drugs supply.

Last Tuesday (March 5), Dari, aged 30 appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court and was sentenced to a further five years for possession of a firearm and ammunition to be served on top of his existing prison sentence.

Malhi received a six-year prison sentence in 2022 after he admitted to possession of a firearm, ammunition and Class B drugs

Detective Constable Ed Costello from Major Crime - Proactive Unit said: "We obtained CCTV footage of Dari handing Malhi a man bag containing the firearm which could have been used for further criminality.

"Dari got Malhi to do his dirty work for him and hide the dangerous weapon at his address.

"However, we're well-versed in carrying out such searches so were able to recover the weapon along with the ammunition.

"Dari will now face extra time behind bars."