Drug dealer jailed after fleeing collision which left London minicab driver critically injured

Image credit: Metropolitan Police

A man who was caught with more than £200,000 worth of drugs after leaving the scene of a collision in Hackney has been jailed.

Shofiqul Hussain, 33, of Crescent Road, E13, was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment on Friday 5 March at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

Hussain pleaded guilty at a hearing in February 2020 to multiple counts of possession with intent to supply drugs and causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

The court heard how on 30 June 2019 Hussain was driving a rental BMW on Wick Lane, Hackney, when the vehicle hit a curb at speed having driven through red traffic lights and collided head-on with a private hire vehicle.

He immediately got out the vehicle and fled the scene, leaving the private hire driver and his three passengers critically injured. One of the victims is still suffering from the injuries sustained in the collision.

Officers attended the scene where they found the empty BMW. A search of the area was conducted but there was no trace of the driver.

The Serious Collision Investigation Unit launched enquiries that included viewing CCTV and dashcam footage, and forensic testing from the scene.

A public appeal was issued for the driver to hand himself in to police, but he failed to come forward.

When Hussain was identified as being the driver a manhunt to trace him was launched. On 23 October 2019 Hussain was apprehended leaving an address in Loughton, Essex.

He was arrested and found to be in possession of drugs. The Loughton address was searched where further drugs, including cocaine, heroin, MDMA and cannabis were found. The estimated street value was in excess of £200,000.

Detective Inspector José-Paulo Qureshi, who led the investigation, said: “Hussain fled leaving critically injured victims in his wake, avoiding arrest and continuing to supply illegal drugs.

“It was sheer luck this collision didn’t result in a fatality and I am very pleased with the sentence handed down and that a dangerous driver and drug supplier has been removed from our roads and communities and that a significant amount of drugs will now not be sold on the streets of London.”