Man jailed following vehicle stop on M6

A man has been jailed after police found a considerable quantity of class B drugs during a stop check near Knutsford.

Hamza Niazi, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Thursday 1 February where he was sentenced to seven years in prison.

The court heard that at around 10.16pm on Saturday 30 December, officers from the Roads and Crime Unit conducted a tactical stop on a black Audi A5, driven by Hamza Niazi, between junction 19 and 20 of the M6 motorway.

Nizazi was subsequently arrested and, during a search of the vehicle, officers located two large bin bags and a shopping bag containing 29.747kilos of Ketamine (Class B) with a potential street value of between £850k -£1.7m.

Niazi was charged with possession with intent to supply Class B drugs (ketamine) and possession of criminal property being remanded in custody.

The 31-year-old later appeared at Chester Crown Court on Thursday 1 February where he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply Class B drugs (ketamine).

Following the sentencing, Rebecca Smith of CID Reactive East, said:

“Illegal drugs have a hugely detrimental impact to everyone, ranging from the buyers and sellers to the wider community, everyone is affected, and we will remain committed to doing all we can to remove those involved in the supply of such drugs from Cheshire.

"You can report suspected drug dealing to Cheshire Constabulary directly by calling 101 or giving the details online via https://www.cheshire.police.uk/ro/report."

Alternatively, information can also be given anonymously, via Crimestoppers, on 0800 555 111.