As he lay in bed fast asleep, he was completely unaware that his life was about to change

As he lay in bed fast asleep, he was completely unaware of who was waiting outside. Covered in a white duvet, he looked up bleary-eyed and officers from the Greater Manchester police made their way into his bedroom.

Waqas Ullah was one of the seven jailed for their part in a crack and heroin conspiracy. The group, based in Bury, used a derelict red Toyota Yaris to store a line of Class A drugs, known as the ‘ACE’ line.

Every day, the phone would be picked up and dropped off by the car by different dealers and couriers, all under the watchful eye of the leader, Hassan Hussain. The 34-year-old would ‘supervise’ the transfers at the end of day shifts and was involved in directing the couriers while working the line himself.

READ MORE: 38,635 text messages and 30,340 calls: Inside the life of the drug gang boss who watched over his empire from home

His brother Asam Hussain, 29, was also involved in the transfer of the drug line between the day and night shift and was with the courier drugs Mohammed Shah Ahmed who was charged on the day shift. Over five months, up to five kilograms of crack cocaine and heroin were advertised for sale through the drug line, worth up to £500,000.

Between January and June 2023, the hotline sent out 38,635 text messages and had almost 12,000 returned, with a total of 6,673 calls made and 23,667 received. But, following covert surveillance by GMP officers, as well as analysis of mobile phones, the ‘well-organised’ conspiracy soon came to light as officers knocked on the doors of those involved.

• Hassan Hussain was arrested at his home, where officers found a Tag Heuer watch in the wardrobe; £15,490 in cash; and a sword. HMRC records showed he did not disclose any income between 2017 and 2023.

• Asam’s fingerprints were found on plastic bags at a Devon Street property used to package crack cocaine.

• Nasir Ali, 30, was said to be a facilitator and responsible for taking orders on ACE Line and directing couriers to meet customers. When arrested, officers found a Nokia phone and £1,120 in cash.

• Waqas Ullah, 33, was also found to be a facilitator and courier, doing the ‘day shift’ using his gray BMW.

• Ali Akbar Azam, 33, another courier, used his house as a ‘stash house’. When he was arrested, officers found a machete in the boot of his car and £2,420 in cash.

• Mohammed Shah Ahmed, 28, acted as a courier and was responsible for selling drugs from his car under the direction of Hassan Hussain and Nasir Ali. Officers found £1,250 under a mattress in the master bedroom of a house on Braemar Drive, as well as £8,000 in wardrobes and drug paraphernalia.

“In total, £27,070 was received from the address,” said prosecutors. “HMRC records show that Mohammed Shah Ahmed did not disclose any income between 2019 and 2023.”

Shakar Ali, 25, was a courier working the ‘night shift’ while using his white Hyundai taxi as ‘cover’. He would drive to locations where customers would get into his taxi for a few minutes while drugs were exchanged, often accompanied by Azam.

When he was arrested, officers found £2,000 in his taxi and designer watches worth £8,500 in his wardrobe. HMRC records showed that Shakar Ali did not disclose any income between 2021 and 2023.

Detective Constable Prince, of Greater Manchester Police, said: “Operation Tagula was an investigation into the ACE drug ring in which members of an organized crime group supplied Class A drugs around the Bury area of ​​Greater Manchester.

“The sentences handed down today put members of this crime group behind bars and send a clear message to those who would blame the community of Bury for criminal activity, that it will not be tolerated, and we are determined to continue to bring criminals to justice before the court. and tackling the harm organized crime does to our communities.

“The Challenger Program is Greater Manchester’s answer to tackling serious and organized crime. It tackles all types of serious crimes: county lines, exploitation of young children and vulnerable adults, modern slavery, immigration and economic crime and the use of firearms. Our Challenger teams across the Greater Manchester area are committed to tackling county lines and we will act on any concerns or information brought to us by the public to tackle serious and organized crime for good.”

Sentences in full

• Hassan Hussain, of South Bank Road, Bury, was jailed for 17 years

• Asam Hussain, of South Bank Road, Bury, was jailed for 10 years

• Nasir Ali, of Whitburn Drive, Bury, was jailed for six years and nine months

• Shahir Ali, of March Drive, Bury, was jailed for six years

• Ali Akbar Azam, of Parkhills Road, Bury, was jailed for nine years

• Mohammed Shah Ahmed, of Braemar Drive, Bury, was jailed for five years and four months

• Waqas Ullah, Bury Road, Radcliffewho was in prison for four years and six months