Bilal Iqbal, age 25 from east London, and Ummad Ahmed, age 32 from the same area, have been jailed for allegedly helping high-profile criminals obtain fake UK ID documents. The pair had pleaded guilty to a total of five charges, including the creation of false UK driving licences and money laundering. In February 2022, the UK National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation, as well as a separate one into Eddie Burton’s case, led to their conviction. Iqbal and Ahmed are scheduled to receive six years’ imprisonment each, with half of that sentence imposed on licence.
On 22 May 2025, the court in Snaresbrook jointly sentenced themMonday. The pair zostały Successfulnoted as.springing £70, one of the cheapest rates for fake UK ID cards, with an additional £40 for an express delivery option to receive the ID in three–four days. Customers could also pay £40 for a convenience service to obtain their fake ID from a printers and limeginas. The duo claimed their fake documents were hacked from official issuing services.
During the NCA investigation into Eddie Burton, the pair purchased a false ID from Iqbal and Ahmed from a CID Leicester environmental group. The ID was used to travel across the mainland European frontier, importing over 300 kilograms of Class A drug into the UK. The fake ID became a tool for irregular migrants to enter and leave the country, providing many functions. The NCA estimates that they sold over 40,000 fake IDs over a period of eight years, an average of approximately 100 per week, with £1 million in profits being laundered through a lator.
Upon their arrest, Iqbal and Ahmed were given 19 fake UK driving licences envelopes and their car and home had been lawfully seized. In Ahmed’s home address in Hornchurch, items seized included an ID card printer, a laminator, blank plastic cards, holographic foil, and £20,000 in cash. John Turner, NCA senior investigating officer, described their successful enterprise as a “diabolically lucrative” illegal operation and a “professional enablers” Church of serious and organized crime. The pair “”);));))