Rahab Cespedes, Mikaela Turner charged with cocaine supply at San Souci

A student was recruited as a ‘runner’ to sell and deliver cocaine for her friend – who allegedly ran a syndicate in Sydney’s affluent suburbs – only one month after she finished parole for supplying drugs, a court has heard.

Rahab Lopez Cespedes (left), 34, allegedly ran a cocaine syndicate known from her San Souci apartment and her friend Mikaela Turner made the deliveries. Picture: Ashleigh Tullis

A student was recruited as a ‘runner’ to sell and deliver cocaine for her friend – who allegedly ran a syndicate in Sydney’s affluent suburbs – only one month after she finished parole for supplying drugs, a court has heard.

Police allege Rahab Lopez Cespedes, 34, ran a cocaine syndicate known as ‘Emily’ from her San Souci apartment where she took orders from customers via encrypted apps on a central phone.

Former hairdresser Mikaela Jane Turner, 29, sold 4.5g of cocaine in exchange for $2300 during one night in October last year and pleaded guilty to supplying prohibited drugs.

Agreed facts tendered to court in Turner’s case said Bankstown Region Enforcement Squad police established a strike force in June 2022 to investigate the ongoing supply of cocaine across central and south west Sydney.

Investigators used electronic and physical surveillance and telephone interception to monitor Cespedes and Turner from July last year.

The women left Sutherland Local Court with their lawyer Ahmed Dib. Picture: Ashleigh Tullis

Turner was a runner for the syndicate and used Cespedes’ car to deliver drugs to customers around Sydney.

Police monitored four sales on October 8 and 9 where Turner delivered two bags, totalling 1g of cocaine, to a customer in exchange for $500 at East Village Hotel in Balmain.

Police then followed Turner to her next delivery at Kirribilli where a customer got into the car for a short time after he had arranged to purchase one gram of cocaine for $500, court documents said.

Turner then drove to Pyrmont where she delivered one bag of 0.5g of cocaine in exchange for $300 following an order placed through the central phone.

The last sale occurred at 1am on October 9 after a customer contacted the phone and arranged to purchase four bags, totalling two grams, of cocaine for $1000 in Kirrawee.

CCTV footage showed Turner arriving at Cespedes’ unit about 1.25am that night, documents said.

The court heard Cespedes allegedly supplied 125g of cocaine the night of October 14 last year.

Police raided Cespedes’ apartment on October 14 where the friends were arrested.

High-profile lawyer Ahmed Dib represented the women in Sutherland Local Court on Tuesday.

The court heard Cespedes was likely to plead guilty to a charge of supplying prohibited drugs once other supply and participating in a criminal group charges were withdrawn.

She is expected to enter the plea next week before her case is adjourned for a pre-sentence assessment report.

Mr Dib made submissions on behalf of Turner telling the court, “her [criminal] history doesn’t assist”.

The court heard Turner sold the drugs only one month after finishing her parole period for more serious drug supply offences for which she was jailed.

Mr Dib said Turner’s apology letter to the court showed she had “grown and learnt”.

Mr Dib conceded there were four offences that took place over one evening which made the offending more serious but was still less significant because there was no planning or sophistication involved.

He also noted the amount of drugs sold was not large.

Mr Dib said Turner had told the court in her apology letter she was “absolutely foolish, absolutely reckless” and there was “no excuse” for her crimes.

He also noted Turner had taken proactive steps in her rehabilitation to educate herself about the harms of drugs in the community.

Mr Dib asked Magistrate Philip Stewart to also take into account that Turner was studying and working full time, submitting she should be sentenced to a community-based order not a jail term.

Turner will be sentenced on Monday.