An east London drug gang leader who compared himself to notorious Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar has been jailed.
Shahen Ahmed, 34, was sentenced to nine years for his role running drug lines across Tower Hamlets.
The lines, named Killah by the criminals, were smashed by Met officers who seized £60,000 in drug money at Ahmed’s address on Stevedore Street, Tower Hamlets, in June 2022.
He was jailed at Snaresbrook Crown Court on for nine and a half years on Friday for supplying Class A Drugs.
Officers in the police operation which brought him to justice said he styled himself on violent Escobar who founded the Medellin Cartel which dominated the world cocaine market and made him one of the wealthiest criminals in history.
Escobar, dubbed the King of Cocaine, had amassed $30bn before he was cornered and killed by police in 1993.
Ahmed boasted to detectives that he was the equivalent “king-pin” in the slice of east London where he claimed to run the streets.
Detective Inspector Sam Bennett, from Op Yamata, said: "My team seized a number of devices from Ahmed. On examination my officers found a video of Ahmed proudly bragging to an unknown passenger about his criminal activity, referring to himself as 'Pablo' and running the streets.
"Drugs are inextricably linked to violence and misery on our streets. They blight communities and ruin lives. To see Ahmed talk so casually and proudly about his involvement is a concern but it also motivates us and makes us even more determined to bring people like him to justice.
“Thanks to my officers and their hard work and diligence, Ahmed now has even more in common with his famed idol – a significant jail sentence.”
The court had heard that Ahmed was targeted by officers working under Operation Yamata, which focuses on dismantling drug supply networks across the city and pursuing those operating them.
They identified three drug lines running under the banner of “Killah” from December 2021 to June 2022.
Officers found Ahmed concealed more than £600,000 in illegal drug money through his business accounts.
Detectives from the Met's Economic Crime Unit are now working to retrieve this under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
