Corrupt cop, 31, who helped organised crime group rob rivals in Line of Duty-style plot is jailed for eight years

A CORRUPT police officer who helped an organised crime gang rob their rivals in a Line of Duty-style corruption plot involving millions of pounds has been jailed for eight years.

Kashif Mahmood, 31, regularly jetted off to Dubai and was lavished with designer watches while working with east London gangsters.

Rogue cop Mahmood carried out fake stops on cars he knew to be carrying hundreds of thousands of pounds in drug money.

He was accompanied by Romanian bodybuilder buddy Ioan Gherghel, 34, posing as his police partner, when they confiscated £850,000 from criminals in March last year.

Married Mahmood also misused police computers to gather intelligence on behalf of criminal associates, including 34-year-old gangster twins, Shabaz and Shazad Khan.

Judge David Tomlinson said the drug couriers that the group robbed would have had no proof of being arrested or a way to explain the loss of the money to their criminal bosses.

CORRUPT COP

He said: "It must have been plain on all of you these couriers were being put in harm's way.

"It was stated in mitigation that these couriers know what the risks they run if they get into bed with organised crime groups.

"That, Kashif Mahmood, rather dilutes your stated reason for getting involved with the Khan's in the first place."

The judge added that while Mahmood claimed he was helping the Khans because they were in danger, he merely 'transferred the risk from one group to another'.

Gherghel admitted conspiracy to acquire criminal property and was jailed for six years.

Shabaz and Shazad Khan, along with older brother Moshin Khan, 35, and his ex-partner Maria Shah, 34, all admitted supplying class A drugs and conspiracy to acquire criminal property.

Ringleader Moshin was sentenced to 16 years jail, Shazad was locked up for 15 years while Shabaz received 14 years.

Maria Shah was sentenced to five years and four months.

Investigations by the the Met's anti-corruption unit began after the French authorities infiltrated the EncroChat encrypted phone network in April 2020.

Kashif Mahmood was at the heart of the most audacious aspect of the organised crime group's criminal conduct, the conspiracy to acquire criminal property

Peter Ratliff, prosecuting, said: "Kashif Mahmood was at the heart of the most audacious aspect of the organised crime group's criminal conduct, the conspiracy to acquire criminal property .

"As and when required by the organised crime group, Kashif Mahmood would take marked and unmarked police vehicles, and, dressed in his police uniform, travel to locations where the organised crime group were engaged in or aware of the transfer of significant quantities of criminal cash, which was either to be laundered or reflected payment for wholesale quantities of drugs.

"Mahmood would then endeavour to seize this, under the pretence of the lawful exercise of his powers as a police officer.

"There was a further unknown but significant seizure on 8 March 2020; two incidents where at least attempts were made to seize substantial quantities of cash, and one attempt to seize £500,000 in cash.

"It was focused on the criminal activity of a corrupt police officer and his criminal associates.

"The investigation revealed Moshin Khan and his brothers Shazad Khan and Shabaz Khan were engaged in the wholesale movement of significant quantities of class A drugs and were laundering thousands of pounds in cash."

Mr Ratliff said the Khans ran a 'highly lucrative organised crime group' while Maria Shah provided 'material support' to their activities.

Investigators discovered communications between Mohsin Khan and a user with the handle 'SSNew' on Encrochat, the court heard.

"The prosecution's case is that 'SSNew' is a man called Mujtaba Neazmand,' said Mr Ratliff.

ROLEX WATCH

"The communications reveal that 'SSNew' was directly involved in the Khan criminal enterprise, and instrumental in making arrangements for the move.

"The evidence, including 'SSNew's' own assertions in EncroChat communications, demonstrates that he was based in Dubai.

"On 15 August 2019 Mohsin Khan flew from London Heathrow to Dubai.

"On 3 September 2019 Shabaz Khan flew from the UK to Abu Dhabi (an approximately 1 hour 20 minute drive to Dubai). On 5 September 2019 Kashif Mahmood flew from Stansted to Dubai.

"On 9 September Kashif Mahmood and Mohsin Khan flew on the same flight from Dubai to Stansted.

"The following day Shabaz Khan flew from the United Arab Emirates to the UK.

'The prosecution suggest that, together with the other evidence in the case, the clear inference from this travel was that the conspirators were meeting in the UAE, in whole or in part in furtherance of the criminal conspiracies.'"

The officer purchased a £6,000 Rolex watch from a jeweller in Harrow on 14 March last year, and booked a £8,000 TUI holiday, which was later refunded to him, the court heard.

Mahmood was working at the Emergency Response Team at Stoke Newington police station at the time of the plot, between November 2019 and July 2020.

The shamed officer was formally kicked out of London's police force at a disciplinary hearing last year.

Mahmood, of Woodcroft, Harlow, Essex, admitted conspiracy to acquire criminal property and misconduct in a public office.

Mohsin Khan and Shazad Khan, both of Babbacombe Gardens, Ilford, Shabaz Khan, of Lime Grove, Hainault, and Maria Shah, of New North Road, Ilford, all admitted conspiracy to supply a class A drug, conspiracy to acquire criminal property.

Mohsin Khan, Shazad Khan, Shabaz Khan, further admitted conspiracy to acquire criminal property.

Mohsin Khan further admitted being concerned in the supply of a controlled drug of class B, Ketamine.

Shabaz Khan further admitted possessing a controlled drug of class B, cannabis, with intent to supply.

Gherghel, of Stratford, east London, admitted conspiracy to acquire criminal property

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