A 'dangerous criminal' associated with a gang involved in a violent turf war with two other Greater Manchester organised crime groups has been jailed. Joseph Jonathan Mulenga, 20, had links with the Cheetham Hill-based 'Waterloo Gang', police said.
GMP said the gang had been in a 'dispute' with two OCGs, one in north Manchester and one in Salford, that resulted in guns being fired and young men being seriously assaulted or stabbed.
Gunmen targeted a property linked to Mulenga in August 2020, but two shots were fired at the next-door neighbour's home instead. His conviction and sentence, together with that of Jamie Leigh Cunningham, 21, came after guns and ammunition were found stashed in a loft, the force added.
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Detectives said Mulenga, of Bellott Street, Cheetham Hill, and Cunningham, of Rochdale Road, Harpurhey, were the final two defendants to be dealt with by the courts as part of Operation Approach, launched to target the Waterloo Gang in March 2021. During the period, a total 26 firearms discharges were recorded in the area and a huge amount of drugs were seized.
Both pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition. At a Manchester Crown Court sentencing hearing on Tuesday, Mulenga was jailed for five years and Cunningham, who police said also had ties with the Waterloo Gang, was jailed for 18 months.
GMP said on Tuesday, March 17, 2021, acting on intelligence, Cunningham's home was raided and officers recovered two shotguns and more than 100 cartridges.
In a subsequent police interview, the force said she told officers Mulenga had taken the guns to her address in a taxi. He was arrested in the July, with DNA linking him to the weapons.
Detective Inspector Simon Akker, of GMP's Serious and Organised Crime Group, said: "The sentence not only takes a dangerous criminal off the streets but resulted in the seizure of two weapons. GMP will relentlessly pursue these crime gangs that are a blight on society and make people's lives a misery.
"Mulenga was associated with the Waterloo Gang, which had been in dispute with two OCGs, one in north Manchester and one in Salford, that resulted in a number of firearms being discharged and young men being seriously assaulted and stabbed, resulting in life-changing injuries.
"Other criminality included attempted murder, assault, aggravated burglary, criminal damage and robbery. On 30 August 2020 an address associated to Mulenga was targeted by gunmen firing two shots but hitting a next-door neighbour's premises.
"Operation Approach was a targeted operation in conjunction with officers in north Manchester and Salford that has led to the arrest of several key members of the Waterloo Gang, a north Manchester Organised Crime Group (OCG).
"Together they targeted those members of the OCG who were suspected of being actively involved in violent crimes and drug-related activity.
"This OCG was involved in many firearms discharges - from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 was a particularly intense period when 26 discharges were recorded in the area. This had a huge impact on the victims and the community.
"In March 2021, 14 people were arrested and officers also recovered two firearms and ammunition, as well as over 8kg of Class A and B drugs. In addition, two stolen vehicles and more than £150,000 of criminal cash were seized."
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