Sebastiano Sorrenti, a businessman from Swindon, has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for his role in supplying industrial pill presses and other equipment to drug dealers. The 35-year-old, who earned the nickname “Machine Guy” among dealers, provided professional-grade services to criminals involved in the production of illicit drugs, including Etizolam.
Sorrenti was found guilty of helping to produce large quantities of Etizolam, a class C drug, by supplying dealers with pill presses, ingredients, and even troubleshooting problems. Investigations into a Scottish drug dealer led the National Crime Agency (NCA) to Sorrenti, who had previously been involved in supplying legitimate pharmaceutical businesses with similar equipment.
The NCA’s investigation uncovered messages in which Sorrenti discussed how to avoid police detection and provided step-by-step advice on manufacturing drugs. One message even detailed how to make up to 140,000 tablets of Etizolam.
In 2020, police discovered that pill presses were being used by an organized crime group in Scotland to produce Etizolam, a drug linked to over 800 deaths in the country that year. Sorrenti’s involvement in this operation was uncovered when his contact details appeared on the phone of a drug dealer.
In 2022, Sorrenti was arrested at his home by NCA officers and Wiltshire Police, where they found pill press stamps matching logos used by drug dealers, as well as quantities of Etizolam, MDMA, and Scottish banknotes. Investigators also discovered over 4,000 messages exchanged between Sorrenti and drug dealers, which included guidance on operating pill presses and images of drugs worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Despite attempting to claim his phone number had been spoofed, forensic analysis revealed no evidence to support his defense. Sorrenti’s critical role in supplying equipment and advice for the production of dangerous drugs led to his conviction.
NCA lead investigator Rory Duffin stated that Sorrenti played a vital part in enabling organized criminals to manufacture and distribute potentially fatal drugs, and his arrest is part of ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal networks in the UK.
Sorrenti was sentenced at Swindon Crown Court, where the judge emphasized the serious impact of his actions in fueling the illicit drug trade.