“If I was a drug dealer, I would have paid my mortgage off"
Convicted drug dealer Mujahid Mahmood, aged 28, of Manningham, Bradford, earned up to £2.5 million in his role as a “trusted lieutenant” for the Bradford Sully Line heroin and crack cocaine supply ring.
However, part-way through his trial, he fled to Islamabad, Pakistan. He was jailed for 10 years in his absence.
On January 10, 2020, Bradford Crown Court heard that Mahmood was still wanted on an arrest warrant.
He is not expected to return to the UK to contest the Proceeds of Crime Act hearing.
Deborah Smithies, for the Crown, said that he raked in approximately £2.5 million from drug dealing, with the available amount being the £74 in cash the police seized from him when he was arrested.
He fled the country two days after telling a jury he had £60 in his bank account and his last car was a second-hand Skoda.
Mahmood claimed he was unemployed but had worked in a phone shop. During his trial, he explained that he had friends from his local area who used drugs and who supplied them.
He claimed: “If I was a drug dealer, I would have paid my mortgage off and be leading a luxury life. I don’t even have a car.”
After giving evidence, Mahmood was released on bail before fleeing to Islamabad.
Following his arrest in March 2018, he was convicted in his absence of conspiracy to supply heroin and crack cocaine.
The drug dealer was among twelve people to be sentenced in June 2019, for their roles in the Sully Line.
The “ring and bring” operation took up to 700 orders a day and had a £10 million turnover in just over a year.
Other defendants are also being pursued for their illegal gains.
Mohammed Ayaz, aged 29, of Undercliffe, Bradford, played a leading role and was jailed for 13 years and two months.
His benefit was set at £2.58 million, with just £10 given as the amount of money he had available.
Miss Smithies stated that the “big benefit figure” would be shared with others when the confiscation orders were settled.
Mohammed Vanid Khan, aged 45, of Lidget Green, Bradford, was jailed for four years and two months.
His benefit figure was set at £18,116. Khan, who did not attend the hearing, also had £10 as his available amount.
Shazad Saleem, aged 41, of Heaton, Bradford, was locked up for 18 months. His benefit was put at £3,220, with £10 as the available amount.
Hareem Hussain, aged 22, of Lower Grange, Bradford, was jailed for three years and nine months. Her benefit was £2,597, with £2,260 being the available amount.
Judge Jonathan Rose made confiscation orders in the cases of Mohammed Vanid Khan, Shazad Saleem and Hareem Hussain.
The Sully Line was first set up in 2012. Between July 2017 and August 2018, it received 229,000 calls.
The 24-hour line supplied heroin and crack cocaine to addicts who rung from phone boxes with their orders.
When he jailed the drug dealers, Judge Rose said: “It was a business that never closes.”
After the gang’s sentencing in June, Detective Inspector Matt Walker said:
“West Yorkshire Police is committed to tackling the supply of illegal drugs and bringing those involved in this criminal activity to justice.
“Information from the public is key to the success of our investigations.”
The Telegraph and Argus reported that officers are working to arrest Mahmood.
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