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Man jailed in US is named over road-rage killing of Bradford cabbie

A gunman serving a substantial jail sentence in the US for a shooting in New York has been named by police in connection with the unsolved murder of a Bradford taxi driver ten years ago. Family man Mohammed Basharat, 33, died in an execution-style killing when he was shot twice in the head by a hooded lone gunman who burst into the minicab office where he worked.

A senior detective investigating the murder, Detective Inspector Steve Snow, yesterday said: “The person responsible for this cold-blooded killing is clearly a dangerous individual.” Mr Basharat, of Leylands Lane, Heaton, was killed with a .38 calibre hand gun at the offices of Little Horton Taxis, in Park Lane, Little Horton, on October 20, 2001.

The previous day Mr Basharat, a father-of-four, had been involved in a road-rage incident in his taxi with another driver, a Jamaican man. The pair came to blows and the Jamaican man told the cabbie: “I am going to kill you.”

Detectives have now named Ricardo Linton, who was living in Bradford at the time, as a person of “significant” interest to the murder inquiry. Linton, who was nicknamed Teddy, and also went by the alias of Wayne Alfonso MacDonald, is serving a prison sentence for a similar shooting which took place in New York in 1993. West Yorkshire detectives have tried to speak to him in jail but he has refused to do so.

Police say Mr Basharat was an innocent man going about his business when his life was taken. It is believed the killing was as a result of the road-rage incident the previous day in Park Lane, Little Horton.

Det Insp Snow, of the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said: “Inquiries remain ongoing and we are seeking information about a significant person we believe to be connected with it. “Ricardo Linton lived in the Little Horton and Girlington areas of Bradford. It is known that he often frequented the Young Lions Club in Lumb Lane, Bradford.”

Linton came to the UK in June, 2001, and initially lived in London, but quickly moved to Bradford, where he stayed with a number of girlfriends. He disappeared shortly after the murder of Mr Basharat. Det Insp Snow said: “Linton has been traced and is currently serving a custodial sentence in the USA for other matters, but we would like to speak to anyone who has any information about his activity when he arrived in the UK in June, 2001, before fleeing the country for his native Jamaica.

“I want people to think back to 2001, were you associating with Teddy, from June onwards, did you ever meet him in the Young Lions? Did he ever confide in you or speak about the incident? Do you know something but were afraid to come forward to the police, or were reluctant to get involved due to having some allegiance with Teddy, which may now have changed.

“We still want people to come forward. They may hold vital clues, which may help bring some conclusion to the family of Mr Basharat. “Anyone associated with this man, who didn't come forward at the time of the incident, is asked to contact police. We are as committed as we were in October 2001 to see this inquiry through to a conclusion.”

People with information are asked to contact the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team on (01924) 334640.

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IDFIMH

Man in court charged with murder of Bradford taxi driver 19 years ago

A man has appeared in court charged with the murder of Bradford taxi driver Mohammed Basharat 19 years ago.

Ricardo Linton, 45, is accused of the killing in Bradford on October 20, 2001.

Linton appeared before Bradford and Keighley Magistrates Court on Friday when the case was sent to the crown court.

Linton, of no fixed address, was before Bradford Crown Court this morning on a video link to Leeds Prison. He was wearing a bright yellow and green top.

When asked by the clerk: “Are you Ricardo Linton,” he replied: “Yes, sir.”

Rachel Darby, Linton’s barrister, told the court: “It will be a Not Guilty plea.”

A Plea and Trial Preparation hearing, when Linton will formally answer the charge, was set for October 28.

The trial, expected to last four to five weeks, was fixed to begin on June 21 next year. It will be held at Bradford Crown Court, probably before a High Court Judge.

There was no application for bail.

Judge Tom Bayliss QC told Linton: “Now, Mr Linton, there is no application for bail so you will be remanded in custody.

“The trial date is June 21, 2021, and it is important that you understand that you must attend for the trial.”

Mr Basharat, 33, of Leylands Lane, Heaton, was killed at the offices of Little Horton Taxis, in Park Lane, Little Horton.

In December, 2011, the Telegraph & Argus reported that the father of four died when he was shot twice in the head by a lone gunman who burst into the minicab office.

In a new appeal to catch Mr Basharat’s killer, Detective Inspector Steve Snow, of the West Yorkshire Police Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said at the time: “We still want people to come forward. They may hold vital clues, which may help bring some conclusion to the family of Mr Basharat.

“We are as committed as we were in October 2001 to see this inquiry through to a conclusion.”

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IDFIMH

Another one that should be dropped in the middle of snake island!

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Man denies 2001 Bradford taxi driver shooting murder

A man has pleaded not guilty to murdering a taxi driver 19 years ago.

Mohammed Basharat, 33, was shot twice in the head at the office of Little Horton Taxis, in Park Lane, Bradford, in October 2001.

Ricardo Linton, 45, appeared at Leeds Crown Court via video-link earlier to deny murdering the father of four.

Mr Linton, of no fixed abode, was remanded into custody following the hearing and is due to stand trial at the same court on 21 June.

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IDFIMH

Bradford taxi driver was 'executed in cold blood' after a 'minor' road rage incident, court told

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... ourt-told/

A BRADFORD taxi driver was executed in cold blood when he was gunned down after a minor road rage incident, a jury heard today.

Ricardo Linton, 45, of no fixed address, pleads not guilty to murdering Mohammed Basharat and attempting to murder Jamshad Khan almost 20 years ago.

Prosecutor Richard Wright QC told Bradford Crown Court that Mr Basharat, 33, a driver with Little Horton Private Hire, was shot twice in the taxi office off Park Lane in Bradford.

He was struck by two bullets, in the head and the mouth, and died where he lay, the jury was told.

Mr Wright said the murder and the attempted murder happened at 8.20pm on October 20, 2001.

A masked man in a green balaclava walked into the taxi office with a revolver, pointed it at Mr Basharat and pulled the trigger.

Mr Basharat sustained “a devastating and inevitably fatal head injury,” Mr Wright said.

But the masked man was not yet finished, the jury was told.

He turned his weapon on another taxi driver, Jamshad “Jimmy” Khan, and pulled the trigger but the gun failed.

The man then turned and left the taxi office.

Mr Wright said at least four shots were fired, two of which had found their mark.

It was alleged to be a targeted attack after an incident of road rage the previous day.

Mr Wright said the “minor and inconsequential” incident on Park Lane, Bradford, involved Mr Basharat and the driver of a white Renault Clio.

Mr Basharat was driving his taxi when the Renault approached from the opposite direction. The jury heard that it was “badly driven” and Mr Basharat had to stop his vehicle.

Both drivers got out and a scuffle ensued.

“The fight was something and nothing,” Mr Wright said. But the man who was driving the Clio came off worse. He ran away abandoning the car in the middle of the road.

Before he left the scene, he threatened to kill Mr Basharat and he meant every word, Mr Wright said.

“He was willing to use a firearm to exact revenge and to execute a man in cold blood,” he told the court.

“The gunman was a man with a short temper who could not stand coming off second best,” it was alleged.

Mr Wright said Mr Khan was also targeted because the gunman thought he could recognise him.

It is alleged that Linton was the gunman who shot Mr Basharat and tried to kill Mr Khan.

The trial continues.

Bradford taxi driver heard over his radio that his friend had been shot, murder trial told

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... rial-told/


Image: Bradford Telegraph & Argus

A BRADFORD taxi driver heard over his radio that his friend and fellow cabbie Mohammed Basharat had been shot, a murder trial jury was told today.

Sameer Wanoo told Bradford Crown Court he was working for Little Horton Private Hire based in the city’s Park Lane almost 20 years ago when Mr Basharat was killed.

The jury has heard that Mr Basharat, 33, known as Bash, was executed in cold blood in the taxi office at 8.20pm on October 20, 2001.

He was struck by two bullets, in the head and the mouth, and died where he lay.

Ricardo Linton, 45, of no fixed address, pleads not guilty to murdering Mr Basharat and attempting to murder another private hire driver, Jamshad Khan.

Prosecutor Richard Wright QC has told the jury that a man in a green balaclava walked into the taxi officer with a revolver, pointed it at Mr Basharat and pulled the trigger.

Mr Basharat sustained “a devastating and inevitably fatal head injury,” Mr Wright said.

The gunman then turned his weapon on Jamshad “Jimmy” Khan, and pulled the trigger but the gun failed.

He then turned and left the taxi office.

Mr Wright alleged it was a targeted attack after a “minor and inconsequential” incident of road rage the previous day.

Mr Wanoo said Mr Basharat told him he had been involved in “a little fight” on Park Lane.

They were all talking about it at the taxi base, he told the jury.

Mr Basharat said his vehicle had priority and the other guy did not stop. He described him as a black man and said another black man present just stood there.

Mr Wanoo said he was working in West Bowling, Bradford, when the radio operator said Bash had been shot.

He saw him on the floor in the doorway to the radio room.

“I tried to shake him but got no response,” he said.

Mr Basharat’s car was parked right outside the office and he moved it to make way for the ambulance.

Mr Wanoo said Bash told him the man in the road rage incident threatened: “You’re messing with the wrong guy.”

Mohammed Salim, joint owner of Little Horton Private Hire in 2001, said that the day before he was killed, Mr Basharat told him he had been in a “tussle” with a driver he described as “a light-coloured West Indian.”

Something had happened to Mr Basharat’s eye and he was wearing glasses and not his contact lenses.

Mr Salim said he went straight to the taxi office when he heard Bash had been shot. He was lying on the floor being treated by paramedics.

The trial continues.

Sounds like another kenneth Noye

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I suspect a lot will come out after the verdict.

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IDFIMH

Taxi driver saw shot colleague fall to floor before gun was turned on him, court told

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... ourt-told/

A taxi driver heard a bang and saw his colleague fall to the floor before the gun was turned on him, a jury heard yesterday.

Jamshad Khan told Bradford Crown Court of the moment Mohammed Basharat was shot dead in the offices of Little Horton Private Hire in Bradford on the evening of October 20, 2001.

Mr Khan, known as Jimmy, was giving evidence in the trial of Ricardo Linton who denies murdering Mr Basharat and attempting to murder him.

Linton, 45, of no fixed address, is alleged to have committed the crimes almost 20 years ago after an incident of road rage the previous day.

The jury has heard that Mr Basharat, 33, known as Bash, was “executed in cold blood” in the taxi office at 8.20pm.

He was struck by two bullets, in the head and the mouth, and died where he lay.

The trial has been told that a man in a green balaclava walked into the taxi office with a revolver, pointed it at Mr Basharat and pulled the trigger causing a devastating and inevitably fatal head injury.

The gunman then turned his weapon on Mr Khan and pulled the trigger but the weapon failed.

Mr Khan told the court that the previous day, the radio operator asked him to go and help Mr Basharat because he was in trouble on the city’s Park Lane.

Mr Khan responded to the request and saw Mr Basharat’s green Vauxhall Cavalier taxi and a white car that was parked in the middle of the road.

Mr Basharat got out of his vehicle and was arguing with a Jamaican man.

They moved towards one another and began fighting.

Two other drivers from the cab firm also turned up but the fight ended when the man and another male with him ran away.

Mr Khan was next shown photos of the taxi office.

He said he was watching television there the following evening and talking to other drivers.

He heard a banging sound and turned to see a man with a gun.

Mr Basharat, who had been leaning against the wall near the radio room, fell to the floor.

“He also pointed the gun at me,” Mr Khan said.

When the pistol was aimed at him, the man tried to fire it but there was a clicking sound.

The gunman then left and he chased after him but he got away.

Mr Khan said the gunman had a black scarf pulled over his face and a black hood pulled down. He said his black coat was identical to the one the man fighting with Mr Basharat the previous day was wearing.

The trial continues.

Man accused of gunning down Bradford taxi driver was in London at time of the murder, court told

A man on trial accused of gunning down a Bradford taxi driver told the jury he was in London at the time of the murder.

Ricardo Linton, 45, denies murdering Mohammed Basharat and attempting to murder Jamshad Khan in the offices of Little Horton Private Hire almost 20 years ago.

Mr Basharat, 33, a driver with the taxi firm, was shot twice at the address off Park Lane in Bradford on the evening of Saturday, October 20, 2001.

He was struck by two bullets, in the head and the mouth, and died where he fell.

Giving evidence at Bradford Crown Court, Linton said he was in London buying cocaine for his drugs collective that weekend.

He also denied being involved in a road rage incident with Mr Basharat the day before the murder.

Asked by his barrister, Joe Stone QC: “Did you pull the trigger killing Mohammed Ba-sharat?” Linton replied: “No I did not.”

He told the court he was born in Jamaica and moved to Brooklyn, New York, after his mother had relocated there.

In late 2000, he came to the United Kingdom using a false name and date of birth.

He went to London and then moved to an address in Bradford.

On May 18, 2001, he applied for leave to remain in the United Kingdom as a student and it was granted.

Linton said he was part of a drug trafficking operation that sourced crack cocaine in London to sell on.

On Friday, October 19, 2001, he drove his Blue Honda Accord to the capital to buy a “brick” of cocaine.

He said he stayed in London over the weekend, buying the drugs on the Sunday.

On that day he heard that a taxi driver had been shot and killed in Bradford.

He said he stayed in London for a further three weeks before returning to Jamaica, leaving some of his clothes behind in Bradford.

He was extradited from the United States to Britain on September 25 last year to stand trial for the murder of Mr Basharat.

The trial continues.

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IDFIMH

Great defence

Most of this is just rehash, but links are there if anyone's interested in reading the full articles.


Ricardo Linton convicted of gunning down Bradford taxi driver 20 years ago

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... years-ago/


Ricardo Linton (Image: Bradford Telegraph & Argus)

JAMAICAN-born drug dealer Ricardo Linton has been convicted of shooting a Bradford taxi driver in the head while on the run from the police for a similar cold-blooded execution-style murder in America.

[...]He was found guilty by the jury at Bradford Crown Court at 10.35am today after a month-long trial.

Mr Justice Lavender will sentence him on September 27.

Linton was remanded back into custody but he is already serving a very long sentence in a US prison for murder.

After the unanimous guilty verdicts were returned by the foreman, the judge exempted the jurors from serving on a jury again for ten years unless they choose to.[...]



Ricardo Linton was on the run from US police after execution-style murder

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... yle-murder

RICARDO Linton was today convicted of the murder of Bradford taxi driver Mohammed Basharat, who was gunned down in the office of Little Horton Private Hire nearly 20 years ago.



Cabbie who witnessed murder of his friend told trial of terrifying moment gunman turned weapon on him

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... ed-weapon/

A CABBIE who witnessed the murder of his friend and colleague told a trial of the terrifying moment the gunman then turned his weapon on him and pulled the trigger.

Sort of alluded to in the previous articles but interesting that they allowed him to leave the US to come here for the UK trial.

Very much doubt he will see another day of freedom in his life.

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IDFIMH

bbc news sentencing story

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-58706962

A drug dealer who murdered a taxi driver in revenge for a fight over a broken wing mirror has been jailed for more than 30 years.
Ricardo Linton, 46, gunned down Mohammed Basharat, 33, in a "targeted execution" on 20 October 2001 after the pair's road rage spat the night before.
Jurors heard he told the father-of-four he would "come get him" during the row.

At Bradford Crown Court, a judge told him he would not be eligible for parole until he was 77.
Linton, who was already serving a US prison term for a fatal 1993 shooting in New York, walked into a taxi office on Park Lane, Bradford, the day after the argument with Mr Basharat.

Mr Justice Lavender, sentencing, said their car wing mirrors had clipped each other, sparking an altercation in which Mr Basharat "got the better of" Linton.
As he left the scene, Linton was heard to say "I'll come back and get you" - a threat which was carried out the next day.
"That's why he was killed - over a fight over a damaged wing mirror," the judge said.
Linton fatally shot the father-of-four before turning the gun on another driver, Jamshad Khan, but the weapon failed and he fled.
"The killing of Mr Basharat was a targeted execution. You ended his life and brought life-long misery to his family. The pain will stay with them forever," the judge said.

Two years after Mr Basharat's death, Linton was arrested in Jamaica for the 1993 shooting of Jose Rosa in New York. He was convicted of murder and jailed by a US court for 25 years to life in 2005.

Referring to Mr Rosa's death, Mr Justice Lavender said: "He [Mr Rosa] was killed by a gunman as he sat in a car with friends who approached the car and shot him without saying a word and shot him in the head while he lay on the floor.
"That was you who executed him, and you did it again in this case in the same way."
Linton was extradited to the UK last year to stand trial for the murder of Mr Basharat and the attempted murder of Mr Khan.

Mr Justice Lavender said his US jail term, which he continues to serve, meant he would be in prison until at least 2029.
He set a minimum term of 31 years and 312 days, and, for the attempted murder of Mr Khan, imposed a term of 30 years to run concurrently.
It means Linton will not be eligible for parole until he is 77, by which time he will have spent a total of 50 years in jail since his arrest in Jamaica in 2003.

and may he rot there until the day he dies and goes to hell !

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Taxis Are Public Transport too

Join the campaign to get April fools jokes banned for 364 days a year !

Can't argue with that.

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IDFIMH