A "prolific" drug dealer caught red-handed with heroin and crack cocaine in his car fled to Pakistan to avoid justice. Qasim Haider, who is also known as Abbas Ashraf, spend five years on the run where he lived with family members and even got married. But he then decided to return to the UK and was arrested and returned to Swansea.
Haider – who is due to become a dad in the near future – has multiple previous convictions for supplying both Class A and Class B drugs.
Alycia Carpanini, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that in the early hours of May 24, 2017, police driving along High Street in Swansea city centre saw a black BMW car without its headlights on. The officers signalled for the vehicle to stop but instead it started reversing away from them "at speed", manoeuvering around a number of cars which were behind it as it did so. The BMW came to a stop and officers rushed to try to detain the driver but only got as far as opening the door before Haider reversed away again. The BMW then collided with a car and became stuck on the pavement.
Officers grabbed the defendant and after a "struggle" during which a Taser stun gun was drawn they managed to drag him from the vehicle and detain him. When the BMW was searched officers found wraps of heroin and crack cocaine along with £1,600 in cash hidden in a shoe in the boot while phones, cocaine, cannabis, and another £160 in cash were recovered from inside the passenger compartment. When the phones were examined messages relating to drug deals were recovered.
Read next: Get the latest court cases sent to your email inbox with our Crime & Punishment newsletter
Haider was questioned and released under investigation and in October 2018 he was charged by postal requisition to appear before magistrates the following month. However the court heard by then the defendant was long gone having left the UK a matter of weeks after his arrest. A warrant was issued and Haider was arrested again in September last year when he returned to the UK.
Qasim Haider, formerly known as Abbas Mohammed Ashraf, aged 31, of Gower Road, Sketty, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty on the first day of trial to dangerous driving, possession of heroin with intent to supply, possession of cocaine with intent to supply, and the simple possession of cannabis when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has eight previous convictions for 20 offences including supplying Class A drugs, possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply, being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs, possession of Class B drugs with intent to supply, being concerned in the supply of Class B drugs, and dangerous driving. At the time he was stopped in Swansea he was on licence after being released from prison for a previous drugs trafficking offence.
David Singh, for Haider, said during his time living with family members in Pakistan the defendant had "matured" and got married, and he said the defendant was due to become a father in three months. The barrister said in 2022 his client had taken what the court may consider to be the "responsible decision" to return home to the UK knowing he was likely to be arrested on arrival.
Judge Paul Thomas KC told Haider he had been a "prolific" drug dealer in Swansea for a number of years and had taken the conscious decision to sell "filthy substances" knowing full well what would happen if he were to be caught. He said it was clear from reference he had read that the defendant was someone of "no little ability" but his good qualities had been overtaken by his repeated drug dealing.
With a 10% discount for his guilty pleas Haider was sentenced to a total of five years and 10 months in prison comprising five years and four months for the drugs offences and six months for dangerous driving to run consecutively. He will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. Haider was also banned from driving for a total of four years and must pass an extended test before he can get his licence back.
READ NEXT:
Man raped schoolgirl in field after forcing her to take cocaine
Christmas Eve shoplifter stood outside the store on his mobile trying to arrange a buyer
Man kept driving stolen pickup even though tyre had come off and it was on fire
You can sign up to our regular Crime and Punishment newsletter here while this interactive tool allows you to check the latest crime statistics for your area:
