Jailed at Bradford Crown Court: A fraudster, a robber and a drug dealer

A MAN was jailed for six years and nine months for a violent knifepoint robbery in Keighley town centre.

Mohsin Ahmed, 24, of Devonshire Street, was sentenced by Judge Colin Burn at Bradford Crown Court.

He pleaded guilty to robbery and possession of an offensive weapon in North Dean Road on June 10.

Prosecutor Ian Mullarkey said Ahmed’s victim, a 24-year-old man from the Keighley area, suffered a stab wound and was assaulted.

Following enquiries into the incident, police arrested Ahmed the following day in Keighley.

He was charged and remanded in custody at Bradford and Keighley Magistrates’ Court on June 12.

Mohsin pleaded guilty on the day he was to stand trial.

After the case, Detective Constable Hannah Young, of Bradford District CID, said: “We hope this outcome will give the victim some comfort and assist in his rehabilitation from this violent attack.”

A CONVICTED drug dealer who concocted a “fairytale” defence after he was caught red-handed peddling heroin and crack cocaine was jailed for almost five years.

Mohammed Amber, who was on prison licence at the time for a six-year sentence for firearms offences, had the drugs stash on him when he was apprehended on June 12, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Amber, 31, whose address was given at HMP Leeds, pretended to have found the 14 wraps of heroin and crack cocaine when he was arrested from a car stopped by the police on Wilsden Road, Wilsden.

Jailing him for four years and 11 months, Judge Jonathan Rose labelled the basis of plea he was sticking to until last week “a fairytale and utter nonsense.”

 A phone seized when Amber was arrested had evidence on it that showed he had been trafficking Class A drugs for six months, prosecutor Carmel Pearson told the court.

Amber pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and heroin and possession of eight cannabis cigarettes found on him at the police station.

Miss Pearson said he had four previous convictions for 21 offences, including Class A drug dealing, dangerous driving and the firearms offences.

Amber’s drug stash and £55 cash found on him were confiscated by the court.

The haul included 10 wraps of heroin worth £56, of 62% purity, and four wraps of crack cocaine worth £24, of 94% purity.

Messages on Amber’s phone were from customers ordering the drugs, dating back to December last year.

Waheed Baber conceded in mitigation that Amber had “a chequered history” and had pleaded guilty late in the day.

Mr Baber said he knew he was going to prison it was just a question of for how long.

Amber’s last drugs conviction was in 2009 but he became embroiled in that world again to fund his cannabis habit. He was a street dealer, low down in the trafficking hierarchy, it was alleged.

He had been in custody for six months and had done remarkably well, keeping clear of both Class A drugs and cannabis, Mr Baber said.

He urged Judge Rose to “temper justice with mercy and keep the sentence as short as possible.”

Amber had been very supportive of his partner, he suffered with anxiety and depression and he was determined to change his ways.

But Judge Rose said Amber was an experienced drug dealer who knew exactly what he was doing when he went out peddling heroin and crack cocaine on the streets for reward, whether money or drugs.

He was on licence at the time and had lied to the police about his involvement in the offences.

A BRADFORD bank employee was jailed for 14 months for a £17,783 scam to fraudulently order computer parts and sell them on the internet.

Alkesh Patel abused the system to make around 187 dishonest purchases over 12 months to pay off his debts and help his family out of financial difficulty, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Patel, 31, of Hartington Terrace, Great Horton, Bradford, would have continued to rip off Lloyds Bank if he hadn’t been caught by pure chance, Judge Jonathan Rose said.

Patel worked in the deeds, mortgages and services department at the bank’s Halifax head office in Trinity Road, prosecutor Paul Nicholson told the court.

He was authorised to order equipment for the bank to a value of £250 but when he legitimately bought an item that cost far more, he realised that no one was checking up on him.

When Patel’s family began struggling financially after his father became too ill to work, he exploited the system.

He ordered a large number of electronic and computer items to sell on the internet.

Patel was caught when a parcel arrived that had been tampered with while he was on holiday. Security staff found that it contained Microsoft computer equipment that would not normally be needed by the bank. An audit trail turned up the other purchases, all done in Patel’s name.

He was suspended from his job and immediately made full admissions to the police. He went on to plead guilty to fraud by false representation.

Patel knew when the security officers worked and he signed for the packages himself, usually ordering an item a week, Mr Nicholson said.

It was a high culpability offence over a sustained period.

Patel’s barrister, Emma Downing, said it was an unsophisticated fraud. He made no attempt to conceal his identity and the audit trail led straight to him.

Patel was helping out his family after his father developed serious back trouble. His thinking became “distracted and desperate.”

He had acknowledged his actions, meaning that no one else was ever implicated.

Patel was deeply ashamed and genuinely remorseful. He was a man of previous good character and he had given the bank back his pension money to make recompense.

Judge Rose said Patel should have sought professional help for his financial problems.

“You are a man of ability and intelligence who has taken an entirely criminal route,’ he said.

“It was pure luck that you got caught. You were going to get away with this because there was no system in place to make checks. The fraud would have continued if you hadn’t been caught by accident.”

A Proceeds of Crime Application hearing to claw back the money will be held next year.