A man has been jailed for holding stolen motorbikes for thieves operating in the North West.
Ahmed Hassan, 34, of Ullswater Street, Liverpool, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday after pleading guilty to five counts of handling stolen goods. Paulinus Barnes, prosecuting, detailed that police spotted Hassan entering a garage in the Woolton area of Liverpool on the evening of July 2, 2021.
He had been seen getting out of a car registered to somebody in Llandudno, and when approached by police, Hassan appeared panicked. Upon inspection, officers could see a number of motorbikes in the garage, including some which were wrapped up ready for shipping.
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Hassan initially claimed the motorbikes “belonged to his mates”, but because of the number found, police believed they may have been stolen so arrested Hassan and conducted a further investigation of the bikes. It was later confirmed that officers found a Yamaha bike stolen from Greater Manchester overnight on June 27, and a Kawasaki motorbike, stolen from the Deeside area in North Wales.
A Honda bike stolen on June 29 from the owner’s driveway in Leigh while he was in the back garden fixing his grandson’s bike, and a Triumph motorbike stolen in similar circumstances on May 31, between 3.45 and 4pm, were both found. A Bugatti motorbike stolen on June 28 from a carpark in Bolton, between 7 and 8am, was also found but this was able to be returned to the owner .
Some of the bikes had been stripped down to provide parts, but others remained intact and packaged to be moved on. The valuation for four of the bikes totalled £28,000, but no valuation was provided for the fifth.
Hassan was interviewed by police and mostly answered no comment, but did say he had not stolen any goods, and has no previous convictions. Anthony O’Donohoe, defending, said: “Clearly his role is to provide a storage facility for a period of time.
“This defendant can rely on his previous good character.” He said Hassan has a wife and four-year-old child at home, who he helps take care of, and has been awaiting the outcome of his asylum seeker status for a long period of time.
Mr O’Donohoe also detailed that Hassan said he originally rented the garage to fix bikes for his friends in order to make some extra money as he is unable to work due to his asylum seeker status.
In sentencing, Recorder Richard Conley said: “The purpose of you minding that lock up was to enable you to carry out your role in a criminal enterprise which consisted of the theft of motorcycles from locations throughout the North West of England and indeed on one occasion, across the border into North Wales.
“You were engaged in stripping them down for parts, and taking steps to disguise the identification of the vehicles by the removal of the registration plates.” He added: “This was calculated offending which has in turn impacted criminality of other kinds which has had an effect on a wide area.”
Hassan was sentenced to nine months imprisonment and taken into custody.
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