Oldham pair in jail after police swoop nets gun
Reporter: Erin Heywood
Date published: 05 December 2012
Sohail Aurengzeb: admitted possession of a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life
Two Oldham men were at the centre of a firearms supply chain.
Sohail Aurengzeb (28), of Wren Street, and Ajaz Nazir (33), of New Earth Street, were members of a trio who travelled to Birmingham to pick up a Skorpion military-grade machine gun and several other firearms, plus an array of drugs, before being swooped on by Greater Manchester Police’s Tactical Firearms Unit and the organised crime unit.
In the early hours of Sunday, August 7, 2011, Aurengzeb and Biny Amin (45), travelled to a block of flats in Wednesbury, West Midlands. Nazir travelled to the same address separately.
The trio travelled back to Manchester after picking up the weapons and drugs, but were stopped by police in Manchester shortly after 3.30am. A bag containing a Skorpion sub-machine gun and hollowpoint ammunition was recovered from Nazir’s car. All three men were were arrested.
The gun, capable of discharging 1,000 rounds a minute, is believed to sell for up to £15,000 in the criminal underworld.
The trio’s Birmingham contacts were also later arrested and more weapons recovered
Aurengzeb was sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison at Manchester Crown Court after admitting possession of a firearm and ammunition. Amin, of no fixed address, was jailed for 14 years for the same offences.
Detective Inspector Chris Mossop of the organised crime unit, said: “It is fair to say this operation has prevented someone being shot and probably killed. The Skorpion is not a weapon carried for protection; plain and simple it is designed for maiming and killing.
“This case is just one of a number of recent and ongoing investigations into the most dangerous and prolific offenders on our streets.”
