Gun deal bust: man jailed for five years

AN ILLEGAL arms deal involving two Oldham men was busted by undercover police.

Officers moved in when a gun and five bullets had been picked up by a taxi driver hired as a courier.

Police stopped the Toyota minibus in Chadderton as 31-year old Ibrar Ahmed was driving home to Bolton from Oldham.

They recovered £2,300 in an envelope then later found the gun hidden behind a rear seat.

Father-of-two Ahmed insisted he knew nothing about it and had been set up by gangsters.

A jury at Manchester Crown Court found him guilty of firearm charges after a four-day trial.

Jailing him for five years, Judge Bernard Lever told him: “People who deal in guns get people like you to take the risks for them, and no doubt you were tempted to give your assistance for money.”

The two Oldham men who played a more crucial role in the arms deal are due to be sentenced at Minshull Street today.

Robert Marshall (26), of Penwell Fold, Royton was the seller of the pistol and ammunition, and Philip Stephenson (32), of Wimpole Street, Oldham, hid them in the back of the mini bus.