Sheffield drug dealer left country for years after being caught with £10k of crack, heroin & cannabis
A Sheffield dealer left the country and started a new life abroad, after being caught with ‘large’ quantities of Class A and B drugs with an estimated street value of over £10,000.
Dawood Mahmood was snared and arrested by police, after officers were originally called out over concerns for the welfare of a person living at a city flat block.
Sheffield Crown Court heard how Mahmood, of Gleadless Road, Gleadless, Sheffiield, was subsequently searched after being seen exiting the flat, into the adjoining stairwell.
“A large quantity of Class A drugs were found in his tracksuit bottoms, two phones and a large amount of cash,” prosecutor Amy Earnshaw told a hearing held on November 12, 2024.
Ms Earnshaw said police subsequently searched Mahmood’s home address, and found a further amount of crack cocaine as well as quantities of heroin and cannabis and drug paraphernalia including plastic film and electronic scales.
Analysis of the drugs found in Mahmood’s possession, both those recovered from his person and his home address, later revealed them to have a street value of £10,149, the court heard.
“The mobile phones were interrogated and material was found on those, which is consistent with the supply of drugs,” Ms Earnshaw said.
She told the court that Mahmood was arrested immediately after the drugs were recovered on January 8, 2021, and he answered no comment to all questions asked during the course of his police interview.
Mahmood, now aged 24, was not charged in connection with the offences, however, until September 2024, when he returned from France where he had been living for two years.
The judge, Recorder David Kelly, asked for an explanation as to what had caused the delay in the case.
Ms Earnshaw acknowledged that the initial delay was as a result of the police investigation, as part of which another individual was investigated and forensic examination of the substances was carried out.
Following this, police sent a postal requisition to Mahmood in May 2023, informing him of the criminal proceedings he faced, and he failed to appear at the requested time.
Mahmood’s legal counsel, Jonathan Turner stressed, however, that Mahmood was released under investigation, and was not on bail following his arrest, and was therefore free to move away, as he did, to France.
Mahmood’s move to France also meant he was therefore not aware of the postal requisition, which was sent to an old address, claimed Mr Turner.
Mr Tuner explained that Mahmood became involved with dealing drugs after his cocaine habit saw him take between seven and eight grams of the substance per day and resulted in him racking up a £8,000 debt.
He suggested Mahmood’s move to France was part of his efforts to free him of his addiction and to ‘disassociate’ from those with whom he would take drugs.
Mahmood pleaded guilty to offences of possession with intent to supply the Class A drugs heroin and crack cocaine, and possession with intent to supply cannabis, a Class B substance, at an earlier hearing.
Ms Earnshaw told the court that prior to these drug matters, Mahmood’s criminal record consisted of 15 offences from six previous court appearances and included two offences of robbery and a Section 20 (grievous bodily harm) assault.
She noted Mahmood, who has been in prison on remand, did not have any other entries for drug offences, however.
In mitigation, Mr Turner said while custody has been ‘difficult’ for Mahmood, in part due him only receiving two visits from loved ones, he is making good use of his time by undergoing courses in English and maths.
“This is a case that has been delayed, primarily due to the Crown, and latterly not at the fault of any one party…time moves on, and people change during that period,” Mr Turner said.
Jailing Mahmood for three years, two months, Recorder Kelly said he had taken Mahmood’s mitigation and the case’s delay into consideration.
He concluded, however, that Mahmood’s offences ‘must be visited by a significant custodial sentence’.
Recorder Kelly ordered the forfeiture of the cash recovered from Mahmood, and for the drugs seized to be destroyed.