The smiling criminal who won't be seeing freedom for a LONG time

The discovery of thousands of messages, guns stashed in a shed and a 'Mexican drug lord' username helped police bring down a pair of EncroChat crooks.

Najeef Saleem and Nahidul Monaf were first investigated by police back in 2019. Detectives received further intelligence to strengthen their case in 2020, when the National Crime Agency handed over with thousands of EncroChat messages.

They were attributed to Saleem, who was using the handle 'Rafealcaroquintero' - a Mexican drug lord.

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One evening in October 2019, cops raided a house on Kingsway in Cheadle and found two self-loading pistols and ammunition stashed in a shed in the garden.

Enquiries quickly revealed those living at the house were not involved in the conspiracy and that the gun actually belonged to Nahidul Monaf, who was doing building work on their property at the time along with his associate Saleem.

CCTV showed the pair accessing the shed on several occasions prior to the raid, before forensic examinations uncovered crucial evidence linking Monaf and Saleem to the weapons.

Police returned to the Kingsway address on January 13 to conduct further searches. Inside the roof space, accessible via a hatch, another gun, more ammunition and a silencer were found.

As the investigation went on, Greater Manchester Police were carrying out a simultaneous operation into Monaf and Saleem in relation to drugs. Following a period of surveillance, police raided several houses linked to the pair.

On July 8 2020, Saleem was arrested at a property on Smallbrook Lane in Leigh. They found around £30,000 in cash, several mobile phones, paperwork and a set of keys linked to a unit in Cheetham Hill.

A radio frequency detector was also seized. The devices are used by organised crime groups to establish if law enforcement is tracking their vehicles or mobile devices. Monaf was arrested at an address on Rita Ave in Moss Side, where police uncovered cannabis plants.

Units in Cheetham Hill were also raided. Two large cannabis farms were found. Police said it was a 'sophisticated set up', with the use of hi-tech, expensive equipment used to control product - including dehumidifiers, a ducting system, filters and a hose system.

The analysis of messages between April and June 2020 also revealed Saleem was regularly purchasing and supplying large quantities of class A and B drugs and was also involved in the supplying and handling of firearms and ammunition through an established criminal network of contacts spanning the UK and abroad.

Texts saw Saleem trying to buy ammunition in bulk saying '250, 300, 500, as many as you can get' and 'please I need bad'.

Discussing the 'sick sprayer' he had just bought, conversations then detailed how two bullets would 'do the job as long as they didn't miss.'

Copious messages including images of drugs, cash and firearms were exchanged - and deals were made. Saleem bragged about obtaining further powerful firearms and hand grenades as he organised the collection of drugs and cash daily.

On Thursday (May 9), Saleem and Monaf appeared at Manchester Crown Square Court to be sentenced after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing.

Najeef Saleem, 45, of Smallbrook Lane, Leigh, was jailed for 22 years. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life; conspiracy to supply cocaine; and conspiracy to supply cannabis.

Nahidul Monaf, 36, of Rita Ave, Moss Side, was jailed for 10 years. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life; and production of cannabis.

Detective Sergeant Colin Shackleton from GMP's Serious Organised Crime Group said: "This was clearly a sophisticated operation. Saleem and Monaf had invested hundreds of thousands of pounds into their illicit enterprise through high quality technology and tracking devices, and the use of encrypted phones, all of which furthered their criminal business and concealed it from police.

"The extent of their criminality should not be underestimated. They were making vast profits from trading the deadliest commodities to anyone who would pay the price. Removing them from our streets will certainly have a detrimental effect on the supply chain, and every weapon we recover, and every criminal we arrest is another potentially fatal incident stopped.

"We've been working relentlessly to tackle firearms enabled criminality, and in the last year, we’ve seen dozens of high-risk offenders from the upper echelons of organised crime jailed for almost 300 years, with firearms recoveries and seizures increasing thanks to proactive operations like this.

"In this case and in so many others, information from communities is crucial, so if you know where dangerous weapons are being stored, carried or used, let us know and we will take positive action."