News, Manchester
Greater Manchester PoliceThe ringleader of a nationwide drugs and firearms conspiracy who was jailed for 25 years has been ordered to pay back £350,000.
Umair Zaheer, 37, formerly of Eccles, was among seven men jailed in February 2022 after police uncovered a plot to carry out a revenge shooting and sell a stash of firearms.
A judge at Manchester Crown Court has now told Zaheer he must give back £350,000 – the total value of his assets – within three months.
Det Insp Rebecca McGuigan of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said Zaheer would have to serve another three-and-a-half years in jail if he failed to comply with the order.
National Crime AgencyPlans for the revenge shooting were uncovered alongside evidence of drug dealing after detectives infiltrated the secret crime communications network EncroChat, a court previously heard.
It was hatched to target those who shot at two of the men during an attack in 2020 in Salford.
Det Insp McGuigan said: “Some of the serious criminality in Salford in the years before these arrests was a result of these individuals and it would be wrong for any of them to benefit from their ill-gotten gains.”
“We will be trying to reclaim the rest of the money if we prove he has more cash or assets we can seize,” she added.
