TWO men have been jailed for their part in a 19kilogramme amphetamine drug plot in south London.

Gary Coats and John Algar were sentenced to 27 months at Croydon County Court today.

Coats, 40, an unemployed man from Wedgewood Road, Weymouth, Dorset, and Algar, 39, a carer, of Church Road, Kenley, were arrested on Tuesday December 7 2004.

The men were in the process of exchanging drugs and money in a lay-by on the southbound carriageway of the A22, approximately one mile north of junction six on the M25.

A bag the men were carrying contained a large amount of vacuumed packed powder. The powder was 19.5 kilograms of amphetamine. More than £15,000 was found in one of the cars.

Detective Superintendent Steve Dann, the head of the Middle Market Drugs Project, said: "This operation prevented a large quantity of hard drugs from reaching the streets of London.

"While we focus mainly on combating the supply of Class A drugs, we often find dealers are involved in more than one commodity. This was a large seizure of amphetamines, which would undoubtedly have had an impact on our communities."