Taxi Driver Online

Four arrests in taxi boss Mohammed Haroon Zeb murder probe



Four men have been arrested after a taxi firm boss was gunned down on his doorstep.

Mohammed Haroon Zeb was taken to hospital in a critical condition after being shot outside his home in Queens Cross, Dudley, just after 12.35am on Sunday, January 31.

The 39-year-old, known as Haroon, died hours later. A post-mortem examination found he died of gunshot wounds.

West Midlands Police arrested a 37-year-old man on suspicion of murder. He was released pending further enquires.

Three men, aged 19, 25 and 26, were arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. They were currently in custody.

The force said its investigation continued "at pace" as detectives continued to try to establish what happened.

Officers are still keen to speak to a man who flagged down officers in the area, just after the shooting.

Anyone with dashcam footage from the area is also urged to get in touch.

Det Chief Insp Jim Munro, from the homicide team, said: “These arrests are a significant development as our investigation continues at pace.

"However, I still need anyone with information to get in touch as soon as possible.

"Haroon’s death is tragic, my thoughts are with his family and friends at this very sad time."

Following his tragic death, Haroon's devastated family released a heartfelt tribute.

They said: “Haroon a beautiful son, brother, father, a real icon to this world.

“He eased the burdens of everyone he knew and his beautiful smile lit up every room he walked in.

“Today we mourn the loss of our hero who will be dearly missed. Forever in our hearts rest peacefully Haroon. We will love and miss you forever and your memories will be engraved in our hearts always. RIP Haroon."

Anyone with information which may assist the investigation is urged to contact police via Live Chat at www.west-midlands.police.uk between 8am and midnight or by calling 101.

Alternatively ring Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

People are asked to quote crime reference 20DY/28354Z/21.

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IDFIMH

Interesting that the police made an arrest so quickly! A dispute between him and his killer ?


Not that that is in any way a reason to act in such a violent way! My sympathies to the family

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Midlands Taxi boss 'executed in drive-by shooting after escalating family feud between Dudley families'

A taxi boss was 'executed in a drive-by shooting' due to an escalating feud between two families in Dudley, a trial heard.

The killing of 39-year-old Mohammed Haroon Zeb followed a car being used to 'run down' someone, a 'group attack' and another 'murder' involving a knife, said prosecuting James Curtis QC.

Mr Curtis told Wolverhampton Crown Court it was a 'carefully planned attack' with eight men making an 'agreement to shoot Mr Zeb in the head'.

Outlining the case to jurors, he said: "It is the case of the Crown, eight male defendants agreed to murder a man - called Mohammed Haroon Zeb.

"He was a youngish man, a husband and a father.

"An agreement was made to shoot him in the head in a drive-by killing.

"They (the defendants) are charged with conspiracy (to murder) because each was playing a part in the agreement.

"It was carefully planned."

Eight men have been charged with conspiracy to murder Mr Zeb, who managed Midland Taxis in Brierley Hill. He died after he was shot in Queens Cross, Dudley, on January 31.

Four of those men have been further charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

A woman has been also been charged with assisting an offender, one of the defendants, who was her boyfriend, the court heard.

Mr Curtis continued: "You are going to find out the murder was tragically the latest in a long running family feud of two family groups in Dudley."

He said there were "tit for tat" allegations going on, including "allegations of criminal damage, kidnapping and throwing out of cars".

Mr Curtis said the "feud escalated" to a car being used to "run down" someone, followed by "a group attack and murder", the latter incident involving "knifing".

"That is in the past, that is not this one," said Mr Curtis.

"Then this year, (there was) a further running down in a car and a murder days later.

"The killing (was) by a shooting in our case.

"Frankly, the Crown says this was a planned execution."

Mr Curtis referred to "hostilities" from one family group, and "reprisals from the other group".

The members of these two families and their close friends lived in "close knit" communities, the court heard.

He said: "Near neighbouring communities in Dudley couldn't have possibly been unaware of the feud."

Mr Curtis referred to two family groups as being the "Claughton family group" and the "Hussain family group".

He said the former was called "Claughton" because they lived "predominantly in the Claughton area of Dudley".

"The other family group", he said, was known as the "Hussain family group".

"The Hussain family, they lived in the Himley area, the Himley Road area", he said.

Mr Curtis described how members of the family groups are "not all blood related".

He said some are "friends" and some members are "young".

He said the firearm used was a "big revolver", with a number of defendants being charged with "joint possession".

Hassan Tasleem, 24, of Richmond Road, Dudley, Arkarsh Tasleem, 26, of Shaw Road, Dudley, Choudhary Naheim Rashid, 47, of Kingswinford Road, Dudley, Choudhary Akeel Hussain, 21, of Brook Street, Dudley, Gurdeep Sandhu, 23, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley, Mohammed Rafiq, 20, of Gammag Street, Dudley, Umar Ali, 20, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley, Shamraz Ali, 20, of Tanfield Road, Dudley, have all been charged with conspiracy to murder.

Hassan Tasleem, Choudhary Naheim Rashid, Gurdeep Sandhu, and Umar Ali have also been charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Sanna Iqbal, 27, of Hordern Road, Wolverhampton, has been charged with assisting an offender. The court heard she was the girlfriend of Hassan Tasleem.

All the defendants deny the allegations.

The trial continues.

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IDFIMH

'Escalating feud' led to slaying of Dudley taxi boss shot outside his home

The long-running dispute between two families was so long the cause was unknown, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

The jury was told it had escalated from street disorder with knives, to murder and maiming.

The eight men sat in silence in the dock as James Curtis QC, prosecuting for the Crown, read out the “agreed facts” about the killing of Mohammed Haroon Zeb.

He said: “There has been a feud lasting several years, the cause of the feud is unknown.The groups compromise of family members or friends.

“The first eight defendants on the indictment are either family members, friends or associates of the group which lived in the Claughton area of Dudley. The other group was members of the Hussain family, who lived in the Himley Road area.”

Mr Curtis described how shotguns were used to intimate members of Himley Road gang. And described how the so called “Golden City” murder of Yassir Hussain by Nabeel Choudhary, on December 4, 2018.

He said: “Yassir Hussain was the deceased, Nabeel Choudhary was found guilty. This was called Operation Decibel. Yassir Hussain was found stabbed during an incident of disorder on Central Drive, Dudley.”

Hussain had been brutally stabbed to death after the car he was was rammed, he had been visiting the area from Burnley.

After the jury heard the “agreed facts” the multitude of CCTV evidence began as Detective Sergeant Andrew McDonald gave evidence.

He said: “I have spent more than 1,150 hours reviewing and compiling CCTV for this case. I am very experienced at my job. I create a report which gives a timeline to events.”

DS McDonald explained how the police knocked on doors of people within the vicinity of the killing in Queen’s Drive, Dudley, asking if they had camera footage. The police also split the area into zones to ensure all CCTV footage is found from the night of the murder.

The supervisor in the CCTV team within the homicide department painstakingly put together CCTV images and video from various cameras across Birmingham and Dudley. The CCTV evidence will be central to the prosecution case and the jury have already seen the last seconds of the father-of-four’s life as the shooting was caught on camera.

The jury will also be shown DNA evidence taken from vehicles they believe were involved in the killing, and Audi A3 and a Volkswagon Golf. A video of men waving a gun around had also been sent to the victim before his death.

The following eight people have all been charged with conspiracy to murder:

Hassan Tasleem, 24, of Richmond Road, Dudley

Arkarsh Tasleem, 26, of Shaw Road, Dudley

Choudhary Naheim Rashid, 47, of Kingswinford Road, Dudley

Choudhary Akeel Hussain, 21, of Brook Street, Dudley

Gurdeep Sandhu, 23, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley

Mohammed Rafiq, 20, of Gammag Street, Dudley

Umar Ali, 20, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley

Shamraz Ali, 20, of Tanfield Road, Dudley

Hassan Tasleem, Choudhary Naheim Rashid, Gurdeep Sandhu, and Umar Ali have also been charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Sanna Iqbal, 27, of Hordern Road, Wolverhampton, has been charged with assisting an offender - her boyfriend Hassan Tasleem. The trial continues.

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IDFIMH

Haven't paid too much attention to this one, but it looks like another retrial.

After seven weeks of court proceedings

Article just says the jury has been dismissed, but no reasons disclosed (see highlighted paragraph). Maybe we'll hear more later


Trial over the killing of Dudley taxi firm boss collapses

https://www.dudleynews.co.uk/news/19786 ... collapses/

THE family of a taxi firm boss gunned down on his doorstep in Dudley are now facing the anguish of a re-run of court proceedings after the collapse of the trial of those accused of playing a part in the brutal killing.

Mohammed Haroon Zeb, who ran Midland Taxis in Brierley Hill, was shot outside his home in Queen's Cross, Dudley, on his birthday, just after 12.35am on January 31.

The 39-year-old dad was taken to hospital but did not survive his injuries and a post mortem confirmed he died due to a gunshot wound.

After an extension police investigation eight men were charged with conspiracy to murder and a trial has been taking place at Wolverhampton Crown Court since October 18.

But after seven weeks of proceedings, the jury was dismissed on December 8 and plans for a retrial ordered.

Possible dates for a new trial are expected to be discussed next week.

Councillor Shaz Saleem, Mr Zeb's cousin, said: "We're frustrated but it's something we understand and respect has to be done. We're confident we'll get the right verdict."

He said it had been a tough year for Mr Zeb's family who were left heartbroken at his sudden and violent death and he added: "It's been a very traumatic time for us. We hope no other family has to go through what we've gone through."

Charged with conspiracy to murder are:

Hassan Tasleem, aged 24, of Richmond Road, Dudley, Arkarsh Tasleem, aged 26, of Shaw Road, Dudley, Choudhary Naheim Rashid, aged 47, of Kingswinford Road, Dudley, Choudhary Akeel Hussain, aged 21, of Brook Street, Dudley, Gurdeep Sandhu, aged 23, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley, Mohammed Rafiq, aged 20, of Gammag Street, Dudley, Umar Ali, aged 20, of Blowers Green Road, Dudley, Shamraz Ali, aged 20, of Tanfield Road, Dudley.

I suspect the judge is currently banging his head against the nearest door.

These situations happen, but it's a nightmare for everyone involved.

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IDFIMH

Tenth person charged in connection with murder of taxi firm boss

A tenth person has been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of a taxi firm boss.

Brandon Evans, 22, of Parkway Road, Dudley, has been charged with conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in connection with the death of Mohammed Haroon Zeb last year.

He is due before magistrates in Wolverhampton today after being charged yesterday.

Mohammed Haroon Zeb, known as Haroon or H, was shot in the head at point-blank range in a drive-by attack.

The attack took place in Queens Cross, Dudley, on his 39th birthday on January 31 last year, and he died in hospital the following day.

Eight others have been charged with conspiracy to murder and are due to stand trial in October.

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IDFIMH

Dudley taxi boss shot dead in escalating feud between families, trial told

An escalating long-running feud between two families resulted in the murder of a taxi firm manager in Dudley, a court heard.

Father-of-four Mohammed Haroon Zeb, known as Haroon, died after being shot in the head in a drive-by attack in the Queens Cross area of the town on January 31, 2021.

Mr James Curtis KC, prosecuting, said the 39-year-old was killed as a result of a dispute with another group that escalated from street disorder with knives to murder and maiming.

Hassan Tasleem, 24, of Richmond Road; Choudhary Naheim Rashid, 48, of Kingswinford Road; Gurdeep Sandhu, 24; Umar Ali, 21, both of Blowers Green Road; Akarsh Tasleem, 26, of Shaw Road; Choudhary Akeel Hussain, 22, of Brook Street; Mohamad Umar Rafiq, 20, of Gammage Street; Shamraz Ali, 20, of Tanfield Road; and Zaine Hussain, 22, Aston Road, all Dudley, are accused of conspiracy to murder Mr Zeb.

Mr James Curtis KC, prosecuting, told the trial at Leicester Crown Court sitting at Loughborough: "It is the crown's case that the nine defendants were in it together with certainly one other man, who is not here.

"They agreed to murder Mohammed Haroon Zeb who was a youngish man, a husband and a father by shooting him in the head in a drive by shooting. The murder was carefully planned and was carried out, we say with a high degree of precision.

"The first defendant Hassan Tasleem is alleged by us to be the man who actually shot the victim. He had the gun and pulled the trigger from the car."

Mr Curtis told the jury that the murder was a "planned execution" with at least three others Rashid, Sandhu and Umar Ali alleged to be in the car at the moment of the shooting, and that a fifth man fled abroad to Pakistan afterwards.

"The murder was the latest spat in a long-running and escalating feud between two families in Dudley. It happened after a series of tit for tat allegations, perceived revenge atrocities, incidents of criminal damage passing back and forth.

"The allegations on both sides are inextricably linked between the two family groups going back over months and years. One atrocity by one group led to reprisals from another group. They didn't let it go," he said.

The court heard that the victim was shot dead days after Choudhary Akeel Hussain suffered a leg injury when he was struck by a car on January 20. That incident followed the Court of Appeal upholding the murder conviction of a man called Nabeel Choudhary who was found guilty of the murder of Yasir Hussain, 34, a relative of Mr Zeb's, in Lower Gornal, in 2018.

Hassan Tasleem, Rashid, Sandhu and Umar Ali are also accused of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life. Hassan Tasleem, Sandhu, Akarsh Tasleem, Choudhary Akeel Hussain, Rafiq, Shamraz Ali and Zaine Hussain are also accused of perverting the course of justice.

All deny the allegations. The trial continues.

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IDFIMH

Dudley pair found guilty of killing taxi boss in 'tit for tat' feud between families

Two men have been found guilty of shooting dead a Dudley taxi owner at point blank range in an escalating 'tit for tat' dispute.

Mohammed Haroon Zeb, known as Haroon or 'H', was shot in the head on his 39th birthday in a drive-by attack in the Queens Cross area of Dudley on January 31, 2021. He was taken to hospital, but died the next day.

Hassan Tasleem, 24, of Richmond Road, and Gurdeep Sandhu, 24, of Blower's Green Road, were both found guilty of murdering the father-of-four in unanimous verdicts, after a trial held at Leicester Court sitting at Loughborough on Thursday. Both were also found guilty of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and perverting the course of justice.

Shamraz Ali, 20, of Tanfield Road, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice in relation to the shooting. No verdict was reached for Mohamad Umar Rafiq on the same charge.

Cleared of murder were Choudhary Naheim Rashid, 48, of Kingswinford Road; Akarsh Tasleem, 26, of Shaw Road; Umar Ali, 21, of Blower's Green Road; Mohamad Umar Rafiq, 20, of Gammage Street; Shamraz Ali and Zaine Hussain, 22, of Aston Road.

No verdict of murder was reached in the case of Choudhary Akeel Hussain, 22, of Brook Street.

Rashid and Umar Ali were found not guilty of possession of firearms.

Akarsh Tasleem, Choudhary Akeel Hussain and Zaine Hussain were also cleared of perverting the course of justice.

The prosecution case was that the victim was killed as a result of an historic 'tit for tat' feud between two groups of families that escalated from street disorder with knives to murder and maiming.

Mr James Curtis KC, prosecuting, told the trial that the nine defendants were in it together along with one other man to murder the father-of-four.

The court heard how the murder was carefully planned and was carried out with a high degree of precision, with defendant Hassan Tasleem shooting the victim from a VW Golf, after anticipating Mr Zeb would arrive at a property in the area at a particular time.

Tasleem denied that he was the person who fired a revolver four times from the front passenger seat of a VW Golf shortly after 12.30am, and told the jury that another man who was not involved in the trial was responsible for the attack.

The court heard that the victim was shot days after Choudhary Akeel Hussain suffered a leg injury when he was struck by a car on January 20. That incident followed the Court of Appeal upholding the murder conviction of a man called Nabeel Choudhary, who was found guilty of the murder of Yasir Hussain, 34, in Lower Gornal, in 2018.

Mr Curtis had told the jury: “The murder was the latest spat in a long-running and escalating feud between two families in Dudley. It happened after a series of tit for tat allegations, perceived revenge atrocities, incidents of criminal damage passing back and forth.

“The allegations on both sides are inextricably linked between the two family groups going back over months and years. One atrocity by one group led to reprisals from another group. They didn’t let it go.”

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IDFIMH

Two Dudley men given life sentences for killing taxi boss in 'tit-for-tat' feud

Two men found guilty of killing a Dudley taxi owner in an escalating 'tit-for-tat' dispute have been handed life prison sentences.

Mohammed Haroon Zeb, known as Haroon or 'H', was shot in the head on his 39th birthday in a drive-by attack in the Queens Cross area of Dudley on January 31, 2021.

He was taken to hospital, but died the next day.

Hassan Tasleem, 25, of Richmond Road, Dudley and Gurdeep Sandhu, 25, of Blower's Green Road, Dudley were both found guilty of murdering the father-of-four in unanimous verdicts, after a trial held at Leicester Court sitting at Loughborough.

Both were also found guilty of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and perverting the course of justice.

Sentencing them on Thursday, Mr Justice Bennathan handed them life prison sentences and told them they will have to serve a minimum term of 30 years.

Shamraz Ali, 21, of Tanfield Road, Dudley, was previously found guilty of perverting the course of justice and has now been sentenced to five years in jail.

The prosecution case was that the victim was killed as a result of an historic 'tit-for-tat' feud between two groups of families that escalated from street disorder with knives to murder and maiming.

Mr Zeb had been returning home when he was shot by Tasleem, who was a passenger of a Volkswagen Golf being driven by Sandhu.

Mr James Curtis KC, prosecuting, said it was a planned shooting, with Sandhu slowing down for the shots to be fired, before the car was immediately driven to a 'changeover point' where it was hidden and the occupants moved to a getaway car.

He told the court there was a 'high degree of pre-meditation' and it took place on a main road in Dudley, which was a further aggravating factor.

A victim impact statement from one of Mr Zeb's cousins, read to the court by Mr Curtis, said "losing Haroon left a huge void in the lives of every family member" and described him as the "light of the family".

He said Mr Zeb's daughter had recently celebrated her 16th birthday, adding: "The deep sadness she felt on this special day is heartbreaking".

Meanwhile words read to the court from Mr Zeb's father said: "Haroon was greatly loved by all.

"Every breath I take is a struggle now my son is no longer here.

"I feel I've lost a part of my soul."

He said the family were grateful for the support police had offered.

Mr Bernard Tetlow KC, representing Tasleem, said he now took responsibility for causing the death of Mr Zeb and had expressed remorse and regret for his actions.

Mr John Femi-Ola KC, representing Sandhu, said he was also remorseful and Mr Andrew Kerr, for Ali, asked for the judge to be merciful as possible when passing sentence.

Mr Justice Bennathan said Mr Zeb had been "his parents' pride and joy".

He said there had been a long-running feud in Dudley and there had been numerous incidents of criminal damage, threats, assaults and even a previous murder.

The judge said he believed the murder of Mr Zeb was carried out in retaliation to a previous attack, although Mr Zeb had played no part in that.

Sentencing Tasleem and Sandhu, he said they had both "played a key role" in Mr Zeb's murder.

He said the use of a powerful firearm in a public street was an aggravating factor, adding: "You helped to create a climate of fear".

Sandhu was also sentenced for two counts of being in possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply, from April 2020.

Police had found him in possession of £220 in cash, as well as 43 wraps of cocaine and 48 wraps of heroin, with a street value of up to £910, the court heard.

Several other men who had also been on trial with the defendants were cleared of murder.

During the trial, Tasleem denied that he was the person who fired a revolver four times from the front passenger seat of a VW Golf shortly after 12.30am, and told the jury that another man who was not involved in the trial was responsible for the attack.

Mr Curtis had told the jury: “The murder was the latest spat in a long-running and escalating feud between two families in Dudley. It happened after a series of tit for tat allegations, perceived revenge atrocities, incidents of criminal damage passing back and forth.

“The allegations on both sides are inextricably linked between the two family groups going back over months and years. One atrocity by one group led to reprisals from another group. They didn’t let it go.”

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IDFIMH

Footage of the shooting in article.

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/loc ... in-dudley/

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IDFIMH