“It was a business that never closes."
A West Yorkshire gang of thirteen men and a woman have been sentenced for a “ring and bring” drug operation.
Known as the ‘Sully Line’ drug dealing racket set up initially in 2012, the gang made about £4 million supplying and selling heroin and crack cocaine in Bradford.
Between July 2017 and August 2018, they received 229,000 calls, the trail at Bradford Court was told.
The gang has been jailed for a total of more than 80 years for their individual roles as operatives in the gang led by Mohammed Assan, aged 26, from Bradford and his brother Mohammed Ayaz, aged 29.
A third ‘director’ of the Sully Line operation was Tassawar Aslam, aged 34, from Bradford.
They operated primarily in the Lumb Lane area of Bradford 24 hours a day supplying Class A drugs to those in need of them, who used phones boxes to ring for them.
The court heard that Assan, Ayaz and Aslam all managed the operation which ran 24 hours a day and took it in turns to make sure supplies were being made.
Judge Jonathan Rose said: “It was a business that never closes.” He called it a “massive” trade in Class A drugs which was wicked and greedy.
Amir Rehman, age 28, from Bradford acted as the storeman for the Sully Line operation. He was earning up to £700 per week storing the drugs in his house. During their search, police officers found 561 deals of Class A drugs worth £3,500.
Mujahid Mahmood, aged 28, from Bradford, is believed to have fled the UK to Islamabad in Pakistan during the trial. He was described as the “trusted lieutenant” for the illegal operation.
The “communications man”, Sheraz Mahmood, aged 31, from Bradford, was tasked with replacing SIM cards and diverting calls to the Sully Line. His job was to keep the phone line operational 24×7.
Sentencing was passed onto the gang by Judge Rose based on the involvement of each individual in the Sully Line drugs racket.
The leading six of the men from the gang were given prison sentences for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Mohammed Assan, 26, was given for 11 years and four months in prison.
Mohammed Ayaz was jailed for 13 years and two months.
Tassawar Aslam received 10 years in prison.
Amir Rehman was jailed for eight and a half years.
Mujahid Mahmood was given ten years in prison and he will serve his sentence if he is arrested abroad on a warrant.
Sheraz Mahmood was given five years and four months in jail.
The remainder of the sentencing of the gang was for supplying Class A drugs, dealing in the streets, for the Sully Line.
Hareem Hussain, aged, 22 from Bradford, was a supplier in the gang and was called “a dishonest woman” by the judge for her role in the crime and for lying to the police and court.
She was a teenager during the time she was part of the Sully Line.
Mohammed Vanid Khan, aged 45, from Bradford, acted as the driver for Hareem Hussain supporting her to hand out the drugs. He was jailed for four years and two months.
Supplier, Mohmmed Zahid, aged 27, from Leeds, was given for two years and ten months in jail.
Muhammed Asfan, aged 37, from Bradford, another peddler in the gang was jailed for two years and two months.
An ex-solider, David Coates, aged 35, who is serving a jail sentence for drug dealing currently, was given for four years for his role in the Sully Line supply.
Shazad Saleem, aged 41, from Bradford, was jailed for 18 months.
The jury convicted Luqman Nazir, aged 28, from Bradford, of two offences of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs. He received three and a half years in prison.
Malikai Hodgson, aged 21, from Bradford, a promising footballer, was spared jailed for his role in the supply of Class A drugs after he pleaded guilty. He was given 16 months imprisonment, suspended for two years, with 280 hours of unpaid work and a four-month curfew order.
Judge Rose praised the police and their investigation, especially for “intelligent and determined work” to terminate the Sully Line drugs operation, reported the Telegraph and Argus.
After the court sentences, Detective Inspector Matt Walker, of the Bradford Organised Crime Unit, said:
“These men were involved in a significant operation in the city to supply a substantial quantity of heroin and crack cocaine.
“West Yorkshire Police is committed to tackling the supply of illegal drugs and bringing those involved in this criminal activity to justice.”
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