A 33-YEAR-OLD man has gone on trial accused of being part of a conspiracy to supply heroin after police officers stopped a Mercedes car in Bradford following a drugs handover.

A jury heard yesterday how back in April 2015 officers had been carrying out undercover surveillance on one of the conspirators when he drove from Dewsbury to Bradford in a black Mercedes and parked up in the Kenmore Road area of Wibsey.

Prosecutor David Brooke told Bradford Crown Court that a black Vauxhall Astra, allegedly being driven by Nisar Khan, was also spotted and a blue holdall containing 12 blocks of heroin, worth about £250,000, was put into the boot of the Mercedes.

The jury heard that the Mercedes was stopped as it drove along Hollingwood Lane and officers recovered the five kilos of heroin.

Mr Brooke told the court that the driver of the Mercedes and a Bradford man had admitted involvement in the conspiracy to supply Class A drugs, but Khan, who was not arrested until about a year after the incident, has denied the same conspiracy allegation.

Following his arrest in April last year Khan, of Parkside Road, West Bowling, gave police a prepared statement in which he denied being present at the time of the drugs handover or using a mobile phone number which the prosecution allege was linked to someone involved in “coordinating” the events on that day.

Mr Brooke told the jury that prosecution would be putting before them analysis of mobile phone records and sightings of Khan.

The court heard that one of the surveillance officers had allegedly identified Khan as being the driver of the Astra about an hour before the drugs handover.

Khan himself accepted that he had been in the vehicle while it was parked near his home about an hour after the Mercedes had been stopped. In his defence statement, Khan said the Astra belonged to a friend and when he became aware of loud music coming from the vehicle that evening he got in it to turn the music down.

Mr Brooke said the prosecution alleged that there was “a strong circumstantial case.”

The trial is expected to last until the end of the week.