More than £300,000 has been confiscated from two Bury sisters who ran a drugs empire under the cover of a beauty business.
At a recent Proceeds of Crime Act hearing at Manchester Crown Court, a total of £345,031.40 was confiscated from seven individuals, including from sisters Shazia, 44, and Abia Din, 47.
The siblings ran the drugs ring out of the Beauty Booth on Chesham industrial estate.
They sold styling products across online marketplaces like Amazon from the shop.
But behind the scenes the siblings were using the unremarkable premises in Oram Street to supply drugs and launder large amounts of cash.
The Dins were farming out heroin, cocaine and amphetamines to contacts in South Yorkshire, through the Wrafter family.
Police pounced initially on Peter Wrafter, now 59, a Doncaster-based drug dealer - but the sisters simply moved their trade to his 31-year-old daughter Natalie.
Their operation foundered after a car containing one of their couriers was stopped in Cheetham Hill, Manchester Crown Court heard two years ago.
Cash totalling £10,000 and an encrypted mobile were seized, say police, which led to Peter Wrafter being apprehended in Doncaster with a gun, cash, mobiles and large hauls of drugs.
Undercover police then witnessed Shazia Din and Natalie Wrafter conducting a cash drop outside Doncaster Prison, according to detectives.
Her son Hassan, now 23, was also part of the operation, and was seen passing a large holdall to an accomplice in Bury.
This holdall was then switched to a second courier, who was pulled over on a road near Knutsford. Inside his vehicle was £170,000.
Another raid on a 'safe house' being used by The Dins at The Dock unearthed £66,000 in cash, along with cannabis, scales and a vacuum packing machine.
Police say the net closed in after further raids on a garage in Ashton Old Road, Manchester, which saw heroin, scales, and a hydraulic press impounded. One dealer, Lee Davis, was then caught with heroin valued at £3m in his van.
Investigators also later swooped on the Din family home in The Drive, Bury, and Abia's home in Woodman Drive.
Luxury Rolex watches and a £60,000 diamond ring, as well as a £50,000 Mercedes, were all seized.
Abia Din admitted to money laundering and was convicted after a trial of the four drugs conspiracies. She was jailed for 18 years.
Shazia Din pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine, cannabis, heroin and MDMA and money laundering and was jailed for 15 years.
Hassan Din pleaded guilty to the cannabis conspiracy and money laundering and was convicted of the cocaine, heroin and MDMA conspiracies. He was jailed for 14 years.
Davis, now 41, of Polefield Hall Road, Prestwich, who pleaded guilty to the cocaine and heroin conspiracy, was jailed for nine years.
Shazia Din has had a total of £259,079.17 confiscated, while her sister Abia has been forced to give up £49,478.45.
Other people from Greater Manchester have had substantial wealth confiscated.
A total of £736,464.30 has now been confiscated from all individuals involved who were instrumental in driving drugs between Manchester and Yorkshire.
A police operation on the case saw more than 60kg of class A drugs seized which included heroin and cocaine as well as £300,000 in cash, a hydraulic press, drug paraphernalia, a handgun and ammunition.
Members involved in the conspiracy were sentenced to a total of 140 years.
Following the confiscation, Detective Chief Inspector Roger Smethurst said: “We are extremely pleased with the results of the confiscation hearing, and the case as a whole.
“The officers involved have worked tirelessly to secure convictions against instrumental members of an organised crime group operating out of Greater Manchester.
“We hope that this serves as a reminder to anyone that we continue to investigate and secure convictions in large-scale drugs operations.”
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