Seven members of an organised crime group based in Oldham and Rochdale have been jailed for a combined 46 years following an 18-month investigation into drug supply and money laundering. The sentences were handed down at Manchester Crown Square Court on Friday 29 May 2026.

The group operated across England and Scotland, involving themselves in the wholesale supply of Class A and Class B drugs alongside a sophisticated money laundering operation. Their criminal activity spanned from January 2024 to May 2025, during which they travelled around Europe in luxury vehicles and flaunted a lavish lifestyle funded by illegal gains.

Throughout the investigation, significant quantities of cash and drugs were moved, including the supply of 80 kilograms of cannabis valued at over £1 million. The court heard how members traversed continental Europe in high-end cars such as Audis, Lamborghinis, and Mercedes, stopping in France, Switzerland, Monaco, and Italy.

Umar Vakas (aged 30 at sentencing), of Rising Lane, Oldham, was jailed for 11 years after being found guilty of conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs in England, as well as conspiracy to supply Class B drugs in Scotland. He was described as a central figure in the drug supply operation, acting as a broker arranging wholesale deals between suppliers and buyers.

Anthony Carter (53), of Briarwood Crescent, Stockport, received a sentence of nine years and nine months for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Waqas Mustafa (33), of Fitzwilliam Road, Rotherham, was jailed for nine years and eight months for conspiracy to supply Class A and Class B drugs in England.

Bilal Irshad (33), of Aubrey Street, Rochdale, was sentenced to six years and eight months for conspiracy to transfer criminal property in England and Scotland. Mohamed Kayani (33), of Shelfield Lane, Rochdale, received four years for the same offence. Sajjad Anwar (35), of Bronte Close, Rochdale, was jailed for three years after being found guilty of conspiracy to transfer criminal property in England, and Talha Nasim (33), of Boundary Street, Rochdale, received two years and four months for conspiracy to supply Class B drugs in England and Scotland.

Investigations revealed how in August 2024, Vakas, Anwar, and Nasim were observed travelling through Europe in luxury vehicles. Later that year, communications between Kayani and Irshad detailed the movement of large sums of cash, including £60,000 in one transaction and discussions involving over £100,000.

In February 2025, evidence linked Vakas and Nasim to the supply of high-grade “moon rock” cannabis, with videos and messages confirming an 80-kilogram deal worth over £1 million. That same month, Kayani was stopped by officers on the M62, where a search of his vehicle uncovered more than £115,000 in cash concealed in a bag for life in the footwell behind his seat.

In the final months of the investigation, Bilal Irshad was arrested at an office in Salford operating under the name ZA Investments Ltd. Police seized nearly £100,000 in cash, a safe, and a cash-counting machine. Further evidence showed Vakas arranging cocaine deals, including videos of kilogram blocks branded to indicate high purity.

On 8 May 2025, officers executed a warrant at a property on Fitzwilliam Road in Rotherham, where Waqas Mustafa was found in possession of crack cocaine, heroin, cannabis, and cutting agents. Anwar played a significant role in the money laundering network, directing others and overseeing the movement and concealment of criminal proceeds.

The sentencing marks the culmination of a lengthy operation targeting organised crime in the Oldham and Rochdale areas, removing a significant network involved in drug supply and money laundering from the streets.