A gym boss who lost his job in lockdown descended into crime and took on a 'leading role' in organised drugs gang. Nabeel Issawi worked as a gym manager, but the coronavirus restrictions meant that they were shut for months at the height of the pandemic.
He was left 'stranded' with no ability to earn and was 'foolishly' tempted into serious crime, Manchester Crown Court heard. A law enforcement hack of the secretive and highly encrypted EncroChat network revealed that Issawi, 33, then became involved in dealing huge amounts of drugs.
Issawi was linked to the supply of more than 60 kilos of cocaine, between April and June in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. Prosecutors said that Issawi used the EncroChat handle 'Famous one is back', and was in contact with another user called 'Greymoon'.
