Drug dealers jailed after being caught with almost £1m in heroin that was set to flood the North East
Two drug dealers have been sentenced to 11 years and just under nine years in prison after being caught with £1m worth of heroin.
by Sam Volpe · ChronicleLiveTwo men drove from London to Newcastle with £1m worth of heroin which was set to "destroy communities and ruin lives".
The pair - Burhan Tatar and Houshyar Mandahaki - and an accomplice have now been jailed for their parts in a conspiracy to supply the Class A drug. They were caught after their colleague Kevin Hardacre was stopped by police officers driving away from a meeting with Tatar and Mandahaki in the Battlefield area of Newcastle.
Searches of Hardacre's property found £925,000 worth of high-purity heroin. Tatar and Mandahaki were arrested at a nearby property.
After an investigation through 2022 they were charged and have now been locked up. Tatar, 43, of Hoe Street, Plymouth was sentenced to 11 years in prison for the supply of a Class A drug, while Mandahaki, 39, of Blagdon Close, Newcastle was sentenced to eight years and nine months in prison for the supply of a Class A drug.
Hardacre, 46, of William Street, Rochdale, was previously sentenced to four years and eight months in prison in December 2022 after being found guilty of supplying a Class A drug.
After the sentencing, which took place on Monday, Detective Chief Inspector Marc Michael said: “Organised crime groups such as these bring misery into our neighbourhoods by selling this highly addictive illicit substance which is well-known to destroy communities and ruin people’s lives.
"This group of men were supplying large amounts of very high purity heroin and travelled a long way as part of their plot to distribute it into our communities.
"Mandahaki and Tatar knew exactly what they were doing, and the severity of their offending is reflected in the sentences handed down. This has been a long and complex investigation and I would like to thank those officers and staff, as well as our criminal justice partners, who have helped secure the right result supporting our purpose of keeping people safe and fighting crime."
The detective said the sentences were "undoubtedly what they deserve" and added: "As part of Operation Sentinel we will continue our clampdown on organised crime and would ask our communities to continue to work with us by reporting suspicious activity and sharing your concerns."
To share information with the police, send the force a direct message on social media, use the live chat function on the force website or submitting a crime report here. You can also call 101. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111.
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