The drive-by shooting outside the Godfather café that led to the downfall of a Manchester gang

A gangland drive-by shooting outside the Godfather café in broad daylight led to the downfall of two rival drug gangs.

As two men sat in the café in Cheetham Hill, a Mercedes slowly stalked by, causing a group, including the men, to go outside and investigate.

A family of eight walked past before three to four shots were fired at the group of men.

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They split, running in different directions, but two had been brutally hit to the legs. One suffered a serious fracture to his ankle, and the other had a deep gunshot wound.

Following the attack, the gunman was helped to flee the country by his brother, and still remains at large. His brother, Ahsan Shabbir, and four other men have today been jailed for their involvement in the shooting, as well as for a raft of drug dealing offences.

Manchester Crown Court heard that on the afternoon of November 15 2019, a group of males were seated inside the Godfather café on Copthall Lane. At around 2.30pm, a Mercedes, driven by Hazhar Anwar, drove slowly down the road, almost coming to a stop outside the café. The front seat passenger was alleged to be Faizan Shabbir, and Danyal Ahmed was sat in the back of the car.

The group who were sitting inside saw the car and left the cafe to pursue it, prosecutor Alaric Bassano said.

“As they approached the car at the junction with Cheetham Hill Road, the front seat passenger pointed a pistol towards them and opened fire, causing the males to run back up Copthall Lane,” he said.

“Two of the fleeing males stumbled as they were struck by live rounds fired from the gun. They sustained serious leg wounds for which they received hospital treatment.”

Footage of the shooting