Two men are jailed for 12 years for the robbery of £45,000 worth of vapes in Cheetham Hill

Karwan Salar (01/01/1992) of West Drayton, London and Ribar Karim (01/07/1988) of Douglas Towers in Bradford, were both jailed at Manchester Crown Court yesterday for 12 years for the robbery and for possessing an offensive weapon.

The court heard how Karim and Salar had been the driver and passenger of an Audi A5 travelling along Waterloo Road in Cheetham Hill on Wednesday 11 January 2023, when they intercepted a Mercedes Sprint Van, being driven by the victim.

After bringing the van to a sudden halt, Salar exited their vehicle and started to threaten the victim if he didn't hand over the keys to the van.

He was then dragged out of the van and assaulted with a large crowbar, leaving him with injuries to his arm that had to be treated in hospital.

He still tried to stop the theft of his van, by tackling his assailant and holding onto the van, but was eventually overpowered.

The men were stopped a short time later, by police - who had tracked the van via the built-in tracker - on Allison Street in the Strangeways area - just a minute's drive away from where they had stolen the van. Officer discovered the van door was wide open and some of the boxes, containing £45,000 worth of vapes, had been moved from the van to the boot of the Audi A5.

Detective Constable Elson, from CID on the North Manchester District, said: "We welcome yesterday's result, which has seen two violent and dangerous men removed from the streets of Greater Manchester for a considerable amount of time.

"We would like to thank the victim, who, not only bravely tried to defend his property from these thieves but has had the strength to support this prosecution to a satisfactory ending.

"As a Force, Greater Manchester Police are committed to identifying, locating and prosecuting anyone who breaks the law, so this court case and result should serve as a deterrent to anyone who may be thinking of entering a life of crime.

"If you or anyone you know has any information in relation to a crime being planned or undertaken, you can contact GMP via 101 or through the Live Chat function on our website www.gmp.police.uk.

"Information can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity - Crimestoppers - on 0800 555 111."

Ribar Karim (left) and Karwan Salar jailed for 12 years