Man, 29, jailed for eight years after police seize sub-machine gun, drugs and cash following traffic stop

Guns and ammunition
Police found a sub-machine gun and ammunition, plus drugs and cash, after a traffic stop led to a search of Azeem Ahktar's address. (Met Police)

A man has been jailed for eight years after police found a sub-machine gun, heroin and more than £200,000 in cash after a traffic stop.

Azeem Ahktar was stopped in Brent on 12 November 2020 by officers from the Met Police's Violent Crime Taskforce who found a bag containing a large amount of heroin in the car he was driving.

A search of the 29-year-old's address found a Skorpion sub-machine gun and ammunition, more than £200,000 in cash, class A and B drugs and drugs paraphernalia and a number of mobile phones.

Azeem Ahktar, 29, of ....., was jailed for eight years at Harrow Crown Court after previously pleading guilty to a raft of offences. (Met Police)
Azeem Ahktar, 29, of Cooper Road, Brent, was jailed for eight years at Harrow Crown Court after previously pleading guilty to a raft of offences. (Met Police)
Police also found a large amount of heroin. (Met Police)
Police also found a large amount of heroin. (Met Police)

Ahktar, of Cooper Road, Brent, was arrested and charged on 14 November.

He went on to plead guilty to: possession of a firearm; possession of ammunition; possession of criminal property relating to £221,320.04 in cash; possession with intent to supply heroin; possession with intent to supply cocaine; possession with intent to supply crack cocaine; and possession with intent to supply cannabis.

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He was sentenced to eight years behind bars at Harrow Crown Court on Friday, 11 June, the Met Police said.

Detective Constable Ash Harkin, the investigating officer from the Met’s Violent Crime Taskforce, said: "What started off as a proactive vehicle stop ended up leading us to a loaded firearm and many rounds of ammunition, and the stark reality is that every bullet we seize could be a life saved.

Police found more than £200,000 in cash at the address. (Met Police)
Police found more than £200,000 in cash at the address. (Met Police)

He added: "We know that drugs not only cause a misery to communities, but also drive a high proportion of violence we see on the streets – and we will continue to relentlessly pursue those who supply them in the capital.

"This investigation involved various teams within the VCTF, working together to bring Ahktar to justice. Reducing violence remains our top priority and officers are out across London daily, removing dangerous weapons and targeting the drivers of violent crime."

Two other men arrested during the same vehicle stop were released under investigation, the force said.

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