Drug Gang Member Ordered to Surrender £43,300 in Assets After £113,000 Profit

A Newport drug dealer jailed for 12 years must hand over £43,300 of his ill-gotten gains or face additional prison time, Cardiff Crown Court has ruled. 💰

Mujtaba Hussain, 30, appeared for a proceeds of crime hearing after being sentenced in December 2023. The court determined he had benefitted by £113,950.53 from selling heroin and crack cocaine.

Judge Paul Hobson ordered Hussain to surrender the available assets within three months or receive an extra 12 months behind bars.

Mujtaba and his brothers Mureed, 31, and Ali, 22, operated a sophisticated drug network, using their Newport criminal connections while living in Birmingham. They were jailed for 13 years and seven years and six months respectively.

Prosecutor Laurence Jones revealed the brothers ran a profitable operation sending over 10,000 “text bombs” to potential customers between June 2021 and February 2022.

Police raids on Birmingham properties linked to the trio uncovered a kilogram block of heroin (street value £177,000), a £25,000 Rolex watch, and £25,000 in cash.

During sentencing, Judge Eugene Egan told the brothers: “You played for high stakes with your eyes wide open and you lost. Huge profits were made in your slick operation and you all played crucial roles.”

He added that Mureed and Mujtaba “played leading roles” with “connections in the drug world in Newport,” while younger brother Ali “enthusiastically helped” and “took over from them when they were arrested and taken into custody.”

All three were convicted by a jury of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs, possession with intent to supply, and money laundering. 🧑‍⚖️