Mark Ford KC Secures Acquittal in the Largest Conspiracy to Import Drugs in English Legal History

In December 2024, the second part of the longest case to be tried by an English court came to a conclusion, and for Mark Ford KC‘s client, a successful one. Ghazanfar Mahmood was charged with 2 counts of conspiracy to import Class A drugs and 2 counts of conspiracy to import drugs of class B in what became known as the Blackpool and Europroduce Conspiracies.

The case concerned the activities of Organised Crime Groups on the Continent and in the UK who combined to import vast quantities of drugs over a prolonged period. The investigation, carried out by the National Crime Agency with assistance from the Dutch police, became the UK’s largest investigation into drug smuggling and uncovered importation on an unparalleled scale – the heroin, cocaine and cannabis was worth up to £7 billion.

Mark’s client was said by the Prosecution to have played a vital role, liaising between the UK and Continental OCG’s, setting up front companies to conceal the criminality and organising warehousing facilities.

After a trial lasting just under a year, Mark’s client was acquitted of the conspiracies by the jury. His co-defendants, Sohail Qureshi and Khalid Vazeer, were convicted and were respectively sentenced to 25 and 20 years imprisonment. Twelve other members of the gang have already been jailed, including the ringleader, Paul Green, who received a term of 32 years following conviction in 2024.

Mark led Hunter Gray of St John’s Buildings, Manchester, and was instructed by Philip Lythgoe of Cunnigham’s Solicitors, Manchester.