A COVERT police operation on Bradford’s streets led to members of a “sophisticated” drugs network being jailed for a total of almost 200 years.

Operation Eatonmere - launched in 2013 by West Yorkshire Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Unit - snared 35 criminals and saw drugs worth about £2 million seized, as well as £360,000 cash.

A number of shotgun cartridges were also found.

In total, 34 of those sentenced were men and one was a woman. As well as Bradford, they came from Manchester, South Yorkshire, London, Liverpool and Kent.

Police said the operation was “community intelligence-led” and saw a “mixture of overt and covert work over a year with a range of tactics used, with officers from both Protective Services (Crime) and Bradford District involved”.

Police also said the operation targeted “criminal groups involved in the importation and supply of drugs”.

The gangs were jailed for 195 years in total - with 18 criminals from Bradford district sentenced to more than 100 years between them.

A police spokesman said the operation initially targeted one gang, before that investigation led to the discovery of a number of other groups.

“The operation started from information received about organised crime groups being involved in the supply of drugs,” said the spokesman. “Officers looked at one group and information gained from investigating that group led to others.”

Detective Inspector Jon Key, who led the operation, said: “This operation identified a number of highly organised and sophisticated crime groups, who were involved in the importation or supply of Class A drugs throughout Bradford District and further afield. These types of investigations are often lengthy and complex and are designed to disrupt the activities of organised criminal groups and bring those involved in this kind of crime to justice.

“While this particular operation may now have concluded our work to disrupt others involved in organised crime continues and I hope this sends out a message that West Yorkshire Police will not tolerate this serious offending.”

Those sentenced from Bradford district were: Muzhar Ahmed, 48, of Henley Road, West Bowling, 15 years for conspiracy to supply heroin and cocaine; Arshad Zaman Khan, 44, of Salt Street, Manningham, 12 years and six months for conspiracy to supply heroin; Nisar Khan, 33, of Parkside Road, West Bowling, 11 years for conspiracy to supply heroin; Peter Rawson, 41, of Clay Hill Drive, Wyke, nine years and six months for being involved in the supply of cocaine; Mohammed Javed, 31, of Bradford Road, Riddlesden, six years and six months for supply of class A drugs and possession of criminal property; Asim Jhangir, 30, of Sandford Road, Bradford Moor, six years and four months for conspiracy to supply class A drugs; Qasim Ahmed, 30, of Naples Street, Girlington, six years for possession with intent to supply cocaine and heroin; Shoaib Ali, 23, of New Fields Walk, Barkerend, five years and two months for conspiracy to supply cocaine and supply of cocaine; Farooq Mohammed, 36, of Hollingwood Lane, Great Horton, four years and six months for conspiracy to supply heroin; Sakif Khan, 28, of Fagley Road, Bradford, four years and six months for conspiracy to supply heroin and cocaine; Adrian Powell, 35, of Heysham Drive, Holme Wood, four years for conspiracy to supply cocaine and heroin; Shabaz Ahmed, 29, of Hendford Drive, Bradford, four years for conspiracy to supply cocaine; Loqman Amirzadah, 28, of Chatsworth Road, Pudsey, four years for conspiracy to supply heroin; Shahban Hussain, 27, of Boynton Terrace, West Bowling, two years and eight months for conspiring with others unknown to supply class A drugs; Atif Khan, 30, of Fagley Road, Bradford, one year and nine months for conspiracy to supply class B drugs; Mariusz Wolkowicz, 39, of Staveley Grove, Keighley, one year and one month for conspiracy to supply class B drugs; Mohammad Fowad Khan, 29, of Folkestone Street, Bradford, two years (suspended for two years) for conspiracy to supply heroin and concerned in the supply of heroin; Piotr Pawel Andrzejewski, 58, of Thursby Street, Bradford, five months (suspended for two years) for supply of class B drugs.

Police said the Muzhar Ahmed case involved a safe house in Little Germany where five kilos of high purity heroin and cocaine was found. Ahmed was also found to be involved in other conspiracies to supply class A drugs to groups in South Yorkshire and London, said police. Eleven other defendants were jailed for a total of 67 years and two months.

Nisar Khan was caught when five kilos of heroin was seized from a vehicle in Scholemoor in 2015, said police.

Police said heroin connected to Arshad Zaman Khan was found in the lids of pens that were in a box imported from Pakistan.

The cases of Shabaz Ahmed and Sakif Khan were linked to two kilos of cocaine that was found hidden behind the speedometer of a vehicle. Ahmed and Khan were found to have links to other criminal groups in Luton and London, said police.

Officers also found £95,000 in cash at Peter Rawson’s address.

Prosecuting barrister David Brooke QC said: “This has been a complex investigation conducted by West Yorkshire Police using many methods of investigation. The results have been outstanding due to the overwhelming evidence obtained which has been presented to such a high standard by the Serious and Organised Crime Unit.”

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Bryar, of Bradford District Police, said: “It is operations like this that have a real impact on the supply of drugs in Bradford district and further afield, and we would like to thank our colleagues for this excellent work.

"Some of these criminals will have been brought to justice with the aid of information from the public, and it is crucial that people continue to report suspicions about those involved in the supply of drugs to their local officers or anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers.

"The supply of drugs is a scourge on our communities and we will continue to work with partners to tackle this type of offending.”

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