It looks like a scene from a movie, but the story behind the image of Khayam Ali Khurshid being captured by armed officers in the streets of Amsterdam days after murdering Cole Kerssaw is a very real one.
Last Friday (May 21), three men were sentenced for the murder of Cole, a young boxer from Bury, after a comprehensive investigation by Greater Manchester Police which eventually spanned an ocean.
GMP’s Major Incident Team of fugitive finders crossed the English Channel to get their final man, after Mohammed Izaarh Khan handed himself in at Bury police station and gunman Kamran Mohammed was found close to home in Rochdale just days after the murder took place in August of last year.
The fatal shooting, which happened on Chesham Road, made headlines around the UK at the time, and in the days following, a large scale manhunt was already underway.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Butterworth, Senior Investigating Officer, explains: “The Critical Wanted Unit completed numerous extensive and meticulous enquiries, including phone work around the location of Khurshid, before we got word from the border agency that he was on the Channel tunnel en route to France.
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GMP // Cole Kershaw, pictured above, was gunned down in Bury
“The unit were then able track him down as being in Amsterdam and we knew from financial transactions that he was planning to board a flight to Dubai, but he actually missed this flight as he didn’t have a COVID certificate.
“The work of the Dutch authorities continued before they tracked him to a nearby street and sent me a picture to check it was him; it was and then the next message I had was that they’d got him!”
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Following the dramatic detention by armed officers in the Dutch capital, it was then the job of the Force Extradition Unit to go to the Netherlands to arrest Khurshid and bring him back to the UK, where he would ultimately face justice for his actions.
The arrest was one of nearly 100 arrests made by GMP’s Critical Wanted team in 2020 – 48 of them being Greater Manchester’s most high-profile fugitives.
A further 46 arrests were made of suspects believed to be assisting those on the run and being involved in other serious crime such as drug supply and assault.
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DCI Butterworth added: “We couldn’t have brought every one of these men to justice had it not been the tireless work of the Critical Wanted Unit, and it’s a team that is vital in securing the arrests of the most serious of suspects we have in our region.
“Any investigation, particularly one as big as this one, is not just about one detective or one team – it is a big team effort from so many people across the force and the Force Critical Wanted Unit, for one, played a crucial role in this case.”
GMP // Kamran Mohammed, Mohammed Izaarh Khan and Khayam Ali Khurshid were jailed for life
Detective Inspector Simon Akker, head of GMP’s Force Critical Wanted Unit, said: “Once again our team have gained a brilliant result for all the painstaking hours of work that they put into ensuring that Greater Manchester’s most dangerous individuals are behind bars instead of on the streets.
“While a lot of our work is domestically alongside the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit and National Crime Agency, it is not uncommon for suspected criminals to flee the country in a bid to avoid facing the consequences of their crimes, but this case epitomises our dedication of going to whatever lengths possible to bring offenders to justice.
“Here we worked collaboratively with the Dutch authorities, and even now we are still liaising closely with them to catch today’s fugitives who, while they may be at large, should know that all of our international partners have the shared endeavour of ridding these people from our streets and we will do what we can in order to achieve this.”
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Over 350 hours of video footage, including 75 CCTV cameras, were meticulously viewed through the course of the investigation, and over 250 people were spoken to as part of the operation – codenamed Landseer.
Kamran Mohammed (28/03/2001), Mohammed Izaarh Khan (19/04/1999), and Khayam Ali Khurshid (20/03/1992) – all from Bury – were each sentenced to life on Friday 21 May 2021 after being found guilty of murder and possession of an offensive weapon with intent to endanger life.
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Government officially approves Eton’s plan to ‘remove barriers’ and open new FREE college in Oldham
Emily Sergeant
Eton’s plans to open a new free college in Oldham will officially go ahead following Government approval this week.
In case you need bringing up to speed a bit, plans for three new post-16 colleges – with the other two being in Dudley and Middlesborough – that are designed to help give young people who’ve done well in their GCSEs the opportunity to achieve the A-Levels they need to go to Oxbridge and other elite universities across the world were first announced back in March 2022, and then given the green light in August 2023.
Eton has partnered with Star Academies – which is said to be the highest-performing state school trust in the country – for the new colleges.
The colleges will aim to recruit ‘dynamic young people from deprived communities’, including in Oldham, and provide them with a ‘rigorous and rounded education’ that supports their ambitions to achieve places at ‘the very best universities’.
Oldham Council has welcomed the news that the new college – set to be named Eton Star Oldham – will go ahead, after the Government confirmed the conclusion of its national review into the proposals.
The decision means that Oldham will become one of the first places in the country to offer this new education model that combines high standards with strong partnerships and expanded opportunities for local young people.
The Government has officially approved Eton’s plan to open a new free college in Oldham / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Approval means pupils from every background will soon have access to the ‘very best’ opportunities.
Cllr Arooj Shah, who is the Leader of Oldham Coucil, said this is ‘great news’ for Oldham, adding: “Eton Star Oldham will give our young people access to life-changing opportunities, no matter their background or where they start in life.
“We have been clear throughout that this must be a college shaped with our young people, our parents and our communities.
“Now that the Government has confirmed it will go ahead, we will work closely with Eton College and Star Academies to make sure this delivers for Oldham’s children and opens doors for generations to come.”
Work will now begin on the detailed next steps – including design, delivery, and engagement with families and communities.
It’s also been confirmed that the college will be built on the current Tommyfield Market car park site in Oldham town centre.
Featured Image – Oldham Council
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Former Salford Red Devils player planning phoenix club after the team’s collapse
Danny Jones
A former Salford Red Devils player is planning to start a phoenix club from the ashes of the fallen rugby league team.
Retired winger Mason Caton-Brown, who played for the Red Devils between 2014 and 2016, is leading the consortium currently being linked with resurrecting the Salford side.
The Greater Manchester sporting institution sadly folded following liquidation on 3 December after a prolonged period of uncertainty and crippling debts.
Despite investors promising funds and multiple adjournments to their winding-up ceremony, time simply ran out and now Caton-Brown and co. are, hopefully, looking to pick up the pieces.
Heading up the move to bring back the beloved outfit, the former chairman of the ‘Forever Reds Supporters Trust’ (FRST), Malcolm Crompton, local entrepreneurs Paul Hancock and Ashley Washington are also assisting with the proposal.
Simply known as ‘The Phoenix Bid’, they are said to have potentially secured a six-figure sum and have already reached some provisional pre-contract agreements with a new coach and several players ahead of the formal offer being taken into consideration.
Publishing a lengthy mission statement on social media earlier this week, the ex-pro wrote: “I moved to Salford from London over 10 years ago, and the club and city welcomed me with open arms.
“It made me who I am today. The Salford City community is like no other, and the club is a big part of that, so when I saw it was at risk of going under, I truly felt the need to be a part of a solution and give back to the club, city and the community.
“But I’m not on my own, I’m part of a team of people that are passionate about what this club means and truly focused on making sure a true Salford RLFC stays alive and is something the fans and the city can call their own.”
Chatting with BBC Sport Manchester in a recent interview, the 32-year-old Enfield-born athlete turned businessman – who also represented the London Broncos and Wakefield Trinity – claims that conversations with investors and stakeholders are progressing nicely.
🗣️ "We are looking to bring this club back to life"
Former Salford winger Mason Caton-Brown has outlined his plans for a new phoenix club.
Salford fans, make sure to listen back to last night's Total Sport.
Signing off the post with a strong assurance, he said: “If our bid is successful, I promise we will do everything we can to protect the club and build a future Salford can be proud of.”
As for the fans, a spokesperson for the aforementioned supporters’ trust dubbed the prospective personnel spearheading the revival as a “powerful and credible team”, with Caton-Brown promising to reveal all the exciting details if the bid gets green-lit.
Speaking in an official press release shared with The Manc, the one-time Jamaican international and adopted Salfordian added: “This isn’t just about rebuilding a club, it’s about rebuilding belief.
“Salford means everything to me as a club and is part of my story. We want to create something the city can be proud of again; a club that stands for honesty, sustainability, and genuine community connection.”
“We’re inviting the people of Salford to stand with us. Together we can rise again, not just to bring rugby league back to this city, but to make sure it thrives for generations to come.”
Do you think The Phoenix Bid will be successful and, more importantly, do you think this group are the right people to bring the club back and get them moving onwards and upwards again?
The Manc -
24th May 2021 
