Eighteen East Lancashire drug dealers have been jailed for almost 90 years.
The men and woman pictured (and others) conspired to flood the streets of Burnley, Brierfield and Nelson with crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine via the ‘Ace’ and ‘Adam’ drug lines.
The heads of the OCG were based in Blackburn and attempted to take over the territory of their criminal rivals, which resulted in violent altercations.
Evidence gathered by Lancashire Police showed the conspiracy ran from December 1, 2021 until July 17, 2023, when the lines were shut down.
Sentenced
Eighteen members of the OCG were convicted and sentenced at Burnley Crown Court on Wednesday:
- Amar Ayad (29) of Ribble Street, Blackburn, convicted of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and possession of criminal property. Sentenced to 11 years and six months
- Hassan Saqib (29) of Beasant Close, Blackburn, convicted of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and possession of criminal property. Sentenced to nine years
- Shezad Sikander (36) of Burnley Road, Briercliffe, convicted of possession with intent to supply crack cocaine. Sentenced to seven years and seven months
- Dannyal Choudry (21) of Park Avenue, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to seven years and four months
- Abdul Haleem (22) of Mansfield Crescent, Brierfield, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to six years and 10 months
- Mustafa Mehmood (22) of Oban Drive, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to six years and three months
- Adiel Nadeem (26) of Princes Reach, Preston, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to six years and one month
- Dilaawaiz Malik (24) of Whalley New Road, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to six years
- Michael Bray (32) of Ann Street, Brierfield, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to five years and 11 months
- Azeem Ismail (26) of Troy Court, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to five years and six months
- Joni Necker (37) of Ann Street, Brierfield, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to three years and nine months
- Uzair Bhatti (26) of Calder Banks, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to three years and nine months
- Shamir Mahmood (21) of Spring Street, Rishton, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to three years and four months
- Saqib Ali (38) of Chapel Street, Nelson, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to three years and three months
- Nasir Zafar (28) of Guilford Street, Brierfield, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Sentenced to three years and two months
- Ammaar Mahmood (21) of Mellor Brow, Blackburn, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Received a 24-month suspended sentence
- Saqib Ali (18) of Halifax Road, Nelson, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Received a 20-month suspended sentence
- Abdul Munaf (38) of Guilford Street, Brierfield, convicted of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine, heroin and cocaine. Will be sentenced in December.
Police still want to speak to 26-year-old Arayeb Saqib as part of their ongoing enquiries.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call 101, quoting log 1033 of January 7, 2023. For immediate sightings call 999.
Disruption and misery
DCI Sarah Denson, from the East Targeted Crime Unit, said: “This OCG spread violence everywhere they went, causing a great deal of disruption and misery in the communities in which they operated.
“I welcome these sentences, which reflect the seriousness of their offending. Law-abiding citizens will now be afforded some respite from their chaos.
“Anyone with information about drug-dealers operating in their area should call police on 101, confident that we will do everything in our power to dismantle their operations and put their members before the courts.”
Judge Daniel Prowse commended officers for their exemplary investigation.
The investigation was part of Operation Warrior, which is our response to tackling serious and organised crime in Lancashire. It is supported by police and crime commissioner Clive Grunshaw.
Mr Grunshaw said: “Results like this highlight the often unseen work being carried out around the clock, and will reassure the public that we are tackling organised crime at full force, with Lancashire Police acting on information from the public to drive criminals out of our county.
“Strong deterrents and proactive enforcement are key, as is focusing on intervention to stop crime in its tracks and break the cycles of re-offending.
“I will continue to back the chief constable, so our police officers and staff have the resources they need to tackle criminal gangs and bring offenders to justice.”
