Drugs gang who supplied cocaine to Northampton jailed for total of 129 years

Thirteen members of a drugs network that peddled class A drugs to Northampton have been jailed for more than 129 years.

The final three members of the organised crime group were sentenced on Wednesday (January 5), finally closing a lengthy investigation by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit.

Ali Zarei was jailed for five years, four months back in September after being identified as a 'wholesaler' based in Northampton.

Zarei, aged 26, of Derngate, arranged meets with the gang using covert, encrypted devices intended to be hidden from the police.

The combined sentence of 129 years, nine months for Zarei and a dozen others is the biggest ever jail term secured by ERSOU’s regional organised crime unit (ROCU).

The group, which was spearheaded by brothers Ansar and Ajmal Akram from Hemel Hempstead, who organised exchanges of multiple kilogrammes of cocaine at a time up and down the country, selling the drugs to other gangs and wholesale drug dealers for onward distribution.

Over a six-month period in 2019, specialist officers from ERSOU investigated the group as they travelled the length and breadth of the country including to Yorkshire, Dorset, Middlesbrough, Leicester, Luton, Northampton and Buckinghamshire.

Waseem Khan, 38, of Carrisbrooke Road, Luton, was a senior member of the group who acted as a middle man for multiple customers, brokering drug deals nationwide. He was jailed for 15 years at a hearing this week.

Also jailed were Mohammed Jahangeer, aged 39, of Sheffield and 39-year-old Taswir Mohammed, of Aylesbury.

They were customers of the business, buying kilogramme blocks of cocaine at a time for onward sale across their local areas. They were jailed for 11 and eight years respectively.

Following the final sentencing, Detective Inspector Ian Mawdseley said: “The hearing today brings to a close a lengthy and complex investigation into this nationwide drugs supply network.

“Thanks to the determination and tireless efforts of our officers, some very dangerous individuals are now facing a significant time behind bars and we’ve halted a supply of huge quantities of class A drugs into communities across the country.”

Ansar Akram 34, of Thumpers, Hemel Hempstead, headed up the organised crime group and was jailed for 15 years after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine and possession of criminal property.

Ajmal Akram, 31, also of Thumpers, was Ansar’s lieutenant within the OCG and was jailed for 14 years after being found guilty of conspiracy to supply cocaine and possession of criminal property.

The other senior member of the group was Rahoof Khan, 27, also of Thumpers, who orchestrated the OCG’s couriers, as well as acting as one himself on several occasions. He was sentenced to 11-and-a-half years in jail in December after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine.

The group had three regular couriers who were responsible for ferrying the class A drugs up and down the country, returning to Hemel Hempstead with bags containing thousands of pounds at a time. They were:

■ Wasim Afzal, 44, from Luton, jailed for 11 years and nine months.

■ Sarfraz Asif, 40, of Luton, was jailed for four and a half years.

■ Jameel Khan, 27, of Nottingham, jailed for 10 years.

Zarei was one of four men who were customers of the group, buying multiple kilogrammes of cocaine for onward sale in their local areas:

■ Ahsan Mahmood, 50, of Peterborough, jailed for 11 and a half years.

■ Ben Lewis, 29, of Bridport, Dorset, jailed for seven years and two months.

■ Ryan Brockley, 36, of Leicester, jailed for five years.