Five men have been sentenced this week at Burnley Crown Court, following a county line drugs investigation.
The West Yorkshire crime group, calling itself Striker, flooded South Cumbria with crack cocaine and heroin between July 26 and September 9 2021 and exploited children as young as 14 to traffic drugs from Bradford to Barrow.
Asim Hussain, 21, of Waterlily Road, Bradford, the head of the crime group, was sentenced to eight years in prison and made subject of a Serious Crime Prevention order for conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin, and money laundering.
Adil Hussain, 19, of Waterlily Road, Bradford, was sentenced to a 12-month community order for money laundering.
Jibram Rahman, 27, of Round Street, Bradford, drugs courier, was sentenced to three years in prison for conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin.
Abaas Ali, 31, of Lower Edge Road, Brighouse, Calderdale, drugs courier, was sentenced to four years in prison for conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin, and money laundering.
Simon Harrison, 36, of Furness Drive, Illingworth, Halifax, street dealer, was sentenced to two years and three months for possession with intent to supply heroin and crack cocaine.
Matthew Murphy, 20, street dealer, of Cloth Hall Street, Huddersfield, and Kelly Newby, 41, of Lesh Lane, Barrow-in-Furness – were sentenced at an earlier hearing for their roles in the conspiracy. Nathan Wharton, 33, street dealer, of Egerton Court, Barrow – has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply but is yet to be sentenced.
The investigation started when police raided Lesh Lane, Barrow on July 26 2021 after reports of drug dealing in the area.
As officers entered the flat, belonging to Newby, they found Murphy in the hallway and on the phone to Asim Hussain.
A total of £1,235 in cash – the proceeds of earlier drug deals – was seized from the living room. Murphy’s phone showed he was taking instruction from Asim Hussain via text message, including messages such as: “Wen should I pass d white [crack cocaine].”
On August 7, a 15-year-old travelled from Bradford to Barrow at the behest of the crime group, in order to transport and deal drugs. This child was joined by a further child, aged 16, on the evening of the August 8, again to facilitate drug supply in Barrow on behalf of the crime group.
On 11 August the 16-year-old was found on Ramsden Dock Road, Barrow in company with Wharton. Wharton was in possession of a hand axe, £340 cash, 24 wraps of crack cocaine, and 36 wraps of heroin, and was arrested. The child was in possession of a phone that subscribed to Adil Hussain and showed frequent contact with the crime group.
Between August 18 and 25 a blue Nissan Micra travelled from Bradford to Barrow on five separate occasions to convey and deal class A drugs in Barrow on behalf of the group.
On August 25, the Nissan Micra was stopped by the police near Ulverston. Street dealer Harrison, and drugs couriers Ali and Rahman, were within the vehicle. All three claimed they had travelled over that day in order to visit the beach. Officers thought this story unlikely so decided to search the Micra’s occupants. When Rahman was searched, he was found in possession of 40 wraps of heroin and 54 wraps of crack cocaine containing Asim Hussain’s fingerprints, and a large sheath knife was hidden under the seat in front of him.
On September 1, a 14-year-old travelled from Bradford to Barrow via the rail network. Text messages recovered from his phone showed that he was in frequent contact with the crime group on the outward journey conveying drugs to Barrow, and was expecting to collect cash for the journey back – and that he was nervous about the job, telling a friend who tried to dissuade him from making the journey “I have to”. He was seen acting suspiciously by rail staff and stopped by British Transport Police at Lancaster railway station, where he was found to be in possession of £1,000 cash.
The final phase of the investigation occurred on October 7 2021. Cumbria and West Yorkshire police teams jointly raided Waterlily Road, Bradford – the home address of Asim and Adil Hussain.
Evidence was recovered including mobile phones used throughout the conspiracy to co-ordinate the drug supply and exploitation of children. When these phones were examined, evidence was found showing Asim Hussain was concurrently running two additional drug supply operations into Bradford and Barnsley. Over £2,000 in cash was also seized from Adil Hussain’s bedroom.
A spokesman from Cumbria’s south area Community Serious and Organised Crime Unit said: “The Hussain brothers’ drug operation exploited the most vulnerable in society, for profit. They used children to traffic drugs into the county, and they made money from Cumbrians struggling with addiction.
“The investigation against this criminal group was lengthy and complex, and the strength of the evidence against Asim Hussain in particular – which ultimately led him to plead guilty to the full facts of the prosecution case rather than elect for trial – was achieved in partnership with West Yorkshire Police and the British Transport Police.
“I hope these sentences send a strong message to those selling class A drugs into South Cumbria: we will pursue you, arrest you, and prosecute you no matter where you live.”
