Charges relate to the importation of £billions worth of drugs.
Update 11 October 12.20hrs
A man arrested as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into a drugs conspiracy believed to be worth billions of pounds has been charged with conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs.
Sean Sherwood (21/12/82) of Railway Street, Hindley, Wigan, was charged, Friday 11 October, with two counts of conspiracy to import class A and two counts of conspiracy to import Class B drugs. He has been remanded in custody to appear at Manchester Magistrates’ Court today. He is the fifteenth man to be charged.
Ashley Jones (25/01/90) of Cromdale Grove, St Helens, charged last Friday, appeared at Manchester Magistrates’ Court. He was bailed to appear at Manchester Crown Court, Crown Square, on Thursday 7 November 2019.
Update 11 October – 08:30hrs
Another man charged over UK’s biggest drugs racket
A man arrested as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into a drugs conspiracy believed to be worth billions of pounds has been charged with conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs.
Ashley Jones (25/01/90) of Cromdale Grove, St Helens, has been remanded and will appear at Manchester Magistrates’ Court tomorrow. He is the 14th man to be charged.
Another man, aged 36, remains in custody after handing himself in to police and being arrested today (10 Oct). He continues to be questioned in connection with the conspiracy.
Update 10 October 2019 – 20:00hrs
Further two men arrested over UK’s biggest drugs racket
Two more men have been arrested as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into a drugs conspiracy believed to be worth billions of pounds.
The men, one aged 29 from St Helens, and another aged 36 from Wigan, handed themselves in at Wigan police station this afternoon and are being questioned in connection with conspiracies to import class A and B drugs.
Update 10 October 2019 – 15.55hrs
Thirteen men have appeared in court over UK’s biggest ever drugs racket
Thirteen men charged with the importation of class A and B drugs, as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into a drugs conspiracy worth billions of pounds, have appeared at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 10 October.
The following men have been remanded to custody: Paul Green (DoB 26/03/65), of Eccleston, St Helens; Sohail Quereshi (DoB 08/07/60), Wood Crescent, White City, London; Mohammed Ovais (DoB 18/01/78), of Bournlee Avenue, Burnage, Manchester; Khaleed Vazeer (DoB 09/11/62), of Westwood Avenue, Timperley, Manchester; Steven Martin (DoB 12/04/71), of Chorley Old Road, Bolton; Mark Peers (DoB 07/02/64), of Norbeck Close, Warrington; Oliver Penter (DoB 01/07/82), of Gladstone Street, Stockport
Andrew Reilly (DoB 24/11/81) of Grange Park Road, St Helens; Paul Ruane (DoB 25/01/65), of Bewsey Rd, Warrington; Ghazanfar Mahmood (DoB 03/12/70), of Green Lane, Bolton; Ifthikar Hussain (DoB 26/08/73) of Upland Grove, Leeds, West Yorkshire; Vojtech Dano (DoB 23/09/81), of Vulcan Gardens, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire; and Ivan Turtak (DoB 30/08/85), of Vulcan Gardens, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, have been released on bail.
All are due to appear at Manchester Crown Court, Crown Square, on Thursday 7 November 2019.
Thirteen men charged over UK’s biggest ever drugs racket
Wednesday 9 October
Suspected members of an international organised crime group – arrested as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into the importation of cocaine, heroin and cannabis worth billions of pounds – have been charged with conspiracies to import class A and B drugs.
The thirteen men, aged between 24 and 59, were apprehended during dawn raids (Tuesday 8 October) across London, Manchester, Stockport, St Helens, Warrington, Bolton, Dewsbury, and Leeds.
This evening the following individuals were charged with four counts of conspiracy to import class A drugs and four counts of conspiracy to import class B drugs – Paul Green (DoB 26/03/65), of Eccleston, St Helens; Sohail Quereshi (DoB 08/07/60), Wood Crescent, White City, London; Mohammed Ovais (DoB 18/01/78), of Bournlee Avenue, Burnage, Manchester; Ghazanfar Mahmood (DoB 03/12/70), of Green Lane, Bolton; Ifthikar Hussain (DoB 26/08/73) of Upland Grove, Leeds, West Yorkshire; Vojtech Dano (DoB 23/09/81), of Vulcan Gardens, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire; and Ivan Turtak (DoB 30/08/85), of Vulcan Gardens, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire.
Khaleed Vazeer (DoB 09/11/62), of Westwood Avenue, Timperley, Manchester; Steven Martin (DoB 12/04/71), of Chorley Old Road, Bolton; Andrew Reilly (DoB 24/11/81) of Grange Park Road, St Helens; Mark Peers (DoB 07/02/64), of Norbeck Close, Warrington; Paul Ruane (DoB 25/01/65), of Bewsey Rd, Warrington; Oliver Penter (DoB 01/07/82), of Gladstone Street, Stockport, were all charged with two counts of conspiracy to import class A drugs and two counts of conspiracy to import class B drugs.
They have been remanded in custody to appeared at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 10 October.
The four men and two women from the Netherlands, who were arrested in April by the Dutch National Police on European Arrest Warrants, are currently awaiting extradition to the UK.
