Three men jailed for more than 17 years for class A drugs supply in Bolton

• Samuel Yagoub (18/09/1999) of Briercliffe Road, Bolton was jailed for six years
• Zakaria Haffow (06/04/2003) of Beaconsfield Street, Bolton was jailed for seven years 
• Khalid Yahya (27/10/2002) of Netherfield Road, Bolton was jailed for four years three months

The sentences at Manchester Crown Court today (Thursday 7 November 2024) came after a proactive investigation by GMP’s County Lines Team, one of five national dedicated County Lines Task Forces.

The covert investigation revealed the supply of class A drugs in two county lines named the ‘Tyrone’ and ‘Nasty’ drug lines.

Mobile phone evidence revealed the data from phones over a five-month period to be far in excess of what is expected from a standard mobile phone, with over 123,000 events, consistent with a suspected drug lines.

The phones routinely sent out a series of ‘flare messages’ advertising the sale of the drugs, letting customers know they are available for delivery.

Between 21 December 2023 and 31 October 2024, the Tyrone lines received 36,131 incoming calls and 9,744 incoming messages. The lines sent out 18,834 messages and 14,816 of these were part of a flare message.

In the same timeframe, the Nasty line received 15,679 incoming calls and 15,312 incoming messages. The line sent out 5,637 messages and 3,135 of these were part of a flare message. 

Examples of messages included - "TYRONE ON, TYRONE ON 24s, new STUFF" and “REAL TYRONE, BANGINGSTUFF, 24/7 DROP OFF”.

Officers from our County Lines team organised and executed seven warrants across Bolton on the morning of 2 May 2024, working alongside specialist Challenger and complex safeguarding teams to secure several arrests.

At Runnymede Court, two men were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply drugs, participation in an organised gang and modern slavery offences.

Haffow and Yagoub were detained and Yagoub was found sat on a burner phone that was downloaded and evidenced as being the Nasty drugs line. 

The Tyrone line was also recovered from the address, hidden behind a unit in the living room. 

A large amount of class A drugs, crack cocaine and heroin were discovered on Yagoub.

Cocaine and cannabis prepared for street deals was also discovered, alongside cash being found on both Haffow and Yagoub.

A subsequent search of Yagoub’s bedroom at his address revealed a large amount of class A drugs being seized, estimated to be in the region of £19,000.  

Yahya handed himself to police a few days later after the warrants and was also charged with being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin. He pleaded guilty on the morning of the trial on 28 November.

Haffow and Yagoub pleaded guilty on the second day of the trial to being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and heroin and cocaine.

Yahya admitted to running one of the Tyrone lines and Haffow another. Yagoub admitted to running the Nasty line. 

PC Shaw, from our Force County lines Team, said: “We have secured strong sentencings against three drug dealers who were blighting the community of Bolton.

“The early morning warrants were a direct result of the team’s work in tackling county lines drug supply and the exploitation of vulnerable people in the Bolton area.

“Our investigation found a network of criminality from phone data and the vast amount of drugs and cash located at the addresses and on the persons of those arrested and subsequently charged.

“Drugs investigations are complex pieces of work, but they all rely on information shared to us first by members of the public. If you have any concerns about drug supply or county lines operating in your area or feel like you have witnessed something suspicious, please do get in touch with us. You can report information to the police on 101, via gmp.police.uk, or by calling the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”