Rochdale, a town renowned as a birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and the cooperative movement, is now grappling with a pervasive wave of machete-wielding drug gangs. Residents describe the atmosphere as reminiscent of a "Mafia TV series," a stark contrast to its historical legacy as a textile powerhouse and a center for social reform.
The town has seen escalating violence linked to rival organized crime groups (OCGs). In one incident on May 22, 2021, two masked men forced their way into a home and attacked 27-year-old Abbas Mushtaq with a sword and a machete, inflicting life-changing injuries. Mushtaq's mother intervened, suffering a wound to her wrist while attempting to disarm one of the attackers. This attack was part of a tit-for-tat feud between criminal groups.
Last week, three individuals were jailed for their roles in the 2021 attack: getaway driver Mohammed Hassan Alam, 26, orchestrator Asad Ali, 31, and facilitator Sonia Ali, 34. Alam and Asad Ali were identified as OCG members. These convictions mark a significant victory for detectives who have faced intimidation while dismantling dominant local crime groups, including the Adam OCG, which a detective stated "pretty much rules Rochdale" in 2023.
However, Mushtaq himself was not an innocent bystander. Five months after his attack, the Smiler OCG, to which he was affiliated, retaliated against Alam. Alam's vehicle was rammed, flipped, and then surrounded by an armed gang wielding machetes, axes, knives, and chainsaws. He was subsequently attacked with blades and doused with corrosive ammonia. In 2023, Abbas Mushtaq was sentenced to 16 years for his involvement in gang-related offenses.
Police have noted a shift towards bladed weapons, potentially due to increased pressure on firearm possession. Detective Inspector Sam Taylor of Rochdale CID stated that while firearms seizures remain significant, "other weapons are starting to be used a little bit more." A former British Army soldier, a local resident, remarked that the machete has become the "weapon of choice for these gangsters," who often use vehicles and motorbikes to intimidate and attack.
"Bleed kits," containing first-aid supplies for stab victims, have been deployed around Rochdale due to the "worrying and tragic reality" of knife crime. The average ambulance response time is 17 minutes, but severe bleeding can be fatal in as little as three minutes.
Dashcam footage captured an incident on Sheriff Street where a white Toyota Aygo, seemingly pursued, was swarmed by motorcyclists. One attacker brandished a machete and slashed at the vehicle before the driver escaped. The footage was not reported to the police by the witness, who feared "getting involved."
Another violent incident occurred in 2017 on the Newbold Estate, where tree surgeon Cameron Brooksbank intervened when he heard an elderly woman being abused. The man she was arguing with, Habibur Rahman, a senior member of the Adam OCG, summoned approximately 20 men armed with weapons. Brooksbank was attacked with an axe, resulting in his left hand being almost completely severed. Mohammed Awais Sajid, the son of the Adam OCG boss, was jailed for 18 years for the attack. Rahman received a four-and-a-half-year sentence for conspiracy to commit violent disorder. Brooksbank later died by suicide six years after the attack, with a coroner concluding he did not intend to take his own life.
Residents on the Newbold Estate described drug dealing occurring openly and expressed fear of retaliation for contacting the police, which they believe allows gangs to maintain control. A woman who witnessed the axe attack on Brooksbank remains traumatized and in counseling, recalling the incident as a "battleground."
Despite the challenges, Detective Inspector Taylor emphasized the police's commitment to maintaining pressure on criminal elements and preventing new OCGs from filling power vacuums. "The people of Rochdale don't deserve to see gang-related violence on the streets – it's just something that we are never going to tolerate," he stated.