Dramatic second police smash county strains gang that made £100,000 a month from drug strains named Rico, Diego, Figo and Potter as they obtain greater than 100 years of jail time
A dozen gangsters have been handed prison sentences totalling more than 100 years for their parts in a drug dealing enterprise.
West Midlands Police have also released dramatic footage of the arrests of the men who led the multi-million pound Birmingham-based drug ring.
The investigation, which was launched in 2022 by the County Lines Task Force (CLTF), busted what was one of the nation’s biggest county lines drugs gangs.
Making up to £100,000 per month peddling heroin and crack cocaine on the streets of Birmingham and Solihull, the CLTF probe focused on the Rico, Diego, Figo and Potter drug lines.
Analysis of all four lines unearthed hallmarks of typical County Lines enterprises, with bulk messages being sent to large numbers of phones advertising the sale of drugs.
A total of 17 warrants were executed by the West Midlands task force, with 12 people handed down sentences at Birmingham Crown Court after pleading guilty to drug charges earlier this year.
Authorities established that brothers Addam and Haroon Iqbal, along with Mohammed Usman, were in control of the Rico Line in the Hodge Hill area of Birmingham.
Adam Slater and Tiahna Phillips were identified as running the Diego Line.
Yasine Sadiq had attempted to evade police detection by reactivating and switching to a different phone network.
A dozen gangsters have been handed prison sentences totalling more than 100 years for their parts in a drug dealing enterprise
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
However, telecommunication investigations and CCTV enquiries meant detectives were able to track the change and link Yasine to the Diego line.
The Figo Line fell under the remit of a man named Ilyas Sadiq, with both Mark Seeley and Amani Adams also linked to the operation.
The trio would regularly exchange messages arranging meet ups and drug drop offs, with Seeley’s car captured on CCTV a number of times parked outside shops where the ‘Diego line’ would be topped up.
Finally, Anees Mahmood, Humair Ul Rehman and Levy Mukwita were found working for the ‘Potter line’ and in regular communication with each other.
Messages revealed that Mukwita would supply drugs to all four lines and would act as the ‘middle man’ to each line.
One tactic utilised by the gang to help evade authorities was to allow drug users to top up the line in exchange for extra drugs.
The total revenue from these lines is estimated to have reached as much as £20,000 a week, meaning the gang could have earned just shy of £2 million in the 18-month period they were known to have been active for.
As part of the investigation, the CLTF also conducted several raids which saw the recover of a significant quantity of Class A drugs, a large amount of cash and mobile phones used to run the lines.
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
West Midlands Police have released dramatic video footage of the moment the men were arrested
During the raids, Addam and Harroon Iqbal, Usman, Seeley, Yasine Sadiq, Ilyas Sadiq, Slater, Phillips and Mukwita were all arrested.
Amani Adams and Rehman handed themselves in the following month, while Mahmood was arrested at Birmingham Airport in September having fled to Pakistan.
Speaking to the dozen’s sentencings, Detective Sergeant Craig Tennant, from West Midlands Police, said: ‘This is a fantastic result following a complex investigation.
‘The team have successfully taken a large number of drugs off the streets and put this group who caused misery in our communities behind bars for a very long time.
‘The four lines operated under a unique model and they all worked together as a coalition, which is rare to see with drugs line.
‘This meant they could service more customers and ultimately earn more money together.
‘Our actions do not stop at enforcement. We continue to work with partner agencies to offer support to vulnerable people and provide long-term support.
‘As ever, we couldn’t do this without information from the public and encourage you to get in touch if you have any information’.
‘You might think it’s nothing, but it could be integral to our investigation’.
