Men jailed as Operation Vulcan secure their first convictions for crimes in Cheetham Hill.

Yesterday (Wednesday 20 December), four men were jailed following a yearlong investigation by Greater Manchester Police’s (GMP) Operation Vulcan.

The five pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to the following offences, appearing at Manchester Crown Court yesterday, they have been sentenced to the following:

• Hedi Sheriatzada (25/11/2001) of no fixed abode pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary, sexual assault, and breach of a suspended sentence. He has been jailed for four years and given a 6-year Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) not to enter Cheetham Hill.
• Bassam Al-Dhufairi (09/01/2003) of Heston Avenue, Manchester, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary, theft, and possession with intent to supply. He has been jailed for two years and four months. 
• Mohammed Jazza (01/01/1995) of Seymour Road, Manchester, pleaded guilty to one count of burglary. He has been jailed for one year and eight months. 
• Ali Fathli (15/03/1999) of Combermere Avenue, Manchester, pleaded guilty to one count of burglary. He has been jailed for one year and seven months. 
• Ahmed Al-Enizi (01/01/2005) of Rutland Crescent, Stockport, pleaded guilty to one count of burglary. He has been given a twelve-month suspended plus 60 hours community service.  

The incidents which led to this conviction began on Friday 21 October 2022, when Hedi Sheriatzada was seen scoping out the premises on Lockett Street. During that day, the men were regularly in contact with one another, which detectives suggest demonstrates their conspiracy.

In the early hours of the next day, just 14 hours after Sheriatzada was captured on CCTV inside the store, four men are seen entering the shop in balaclavas, carrying weapons. Forcing entry triggered an alarm for the shop, which caused the men to flee the scene, but cell site analysis placed them at the premises at the time of the incident.

Just one day later, on Monday 24 October, Sheriatzada and Bassam Al-Dhufairi are seen doing another reconnaissance of a different counterfeit shop on Lockett Street, familiarising themselves with their next target.

Hours later, at around 5am in the morning on Tuesday 25 October, the five men arrived at Lockett Street, with weapons in their vehicle, to force entry to a counterfeit shop. Unfortunately for the gang, this day coincided with Operation Avro in North Manchester – a day which sees proactive, high visibility policing on the Streets of Manchester to tackle crime. Police were immediately on the scene, chasing the suspects, and were able to seize their vehicle which provided an array of crucial forensic evidence, including a machete which had blood from Al Dhufairi on the handle, and £23,000 worth of stolen counterfeit clothes.

This shop was Operation Vulcan’s very first seizure, which resulted in around 20 tonnes of fake items being seized.

On Monday 28 November, Operation Vulcan executed warrants at the home addresses of Sheritzada and Al-Dhufairri where they seized mobile phones and clothing that matched what they were caught wearing on CCTV when scoping out their target premises. Police also seized quantities of cannabis and a mobile phone with messages consistent with a drug operation.

In February this year (2023), police executed further warrants at the outstanding addresses, arresting Mohammed Jazza, Ali Fathli, and Ahmed Al-Enizi. A search of their houses revealed multiple mobile phones which linked the men to the conspiracy.

During the course of the investigation, detectives were also able to link Hedi Sheriatzada to a sexual assault of a woman in Cheetham Hill, who was with her partner young son at the time.

Detective Constable Matt Bowling from Operation Vulcan said: “We’ve long said the sale of counterfeit goods was linked to other more serious and violent offences and that is something plainly seen in this case. These men went equipped with weapons and one individual has been convicted for an abhorrent sexual assault of a woman whilst he was working in a counterfeit shop.

“This was a really intricate investigation where police spent hours trawling through phone records, cell site analysis and CCTV to build a compelling case which demonstrated the extent of their criminality, leaving the men little choice but to plead guilty.

“Until Operation Vulcan was launched, criminals involved in counterfeiting have felt themselves to be above the law, our team are now showing them this isn’t the case. This type of criminality can and will lead to long jail sentences because once a gang is on our radar, we will investigate every aspect of their life, and prosecute them for every form of criminality they’re involved in.”

Kate Green, Deputy Mayor for Policing, Crime, Fire and Criminal Justice, said: “It is very pleasing to see the first conviction for Op Vulcan come through. A lot of hard work and time goes into building a case of this complexity and it is credit to the team to achieve this so quickly. I hope this conviction sends a clear message to anyone involved in this type of criminality that we are working hard to use the full force of the law on those that seek to blight our communities. I also hope it provides reassurance to the public that our partnership approach to this is working.

“The potential for serious violence in this case shows very clearly the link is between counterfeit goods and serious organised crime and is a reminder to all to not purchase counterfeit goods and fund this activity. Op Vulcan partners remain committed to bringing offenders to justice and ridding our streets of this criminality.”