Three men sentenced to up to 14 years in prison in 'Operation Mustang' cocaine case
The Eastern High Court has sentenced three men to prison terms of 14, 13 and 9 years for cocaine trafficking. The case marks the final chapter in the police's 'Operation Mustang' investigation.
High Court upholds harsh sentences in major drug case
The Eastern High Court delivered its judgement on Wednesday in a comprehensive drug case complex that police investigated under the codename 'Operation Mustang'. According to Politiken, three men received prison sentences of 14, 13 and 9 years respectively for trafficking in cocaine and other illegal substances.
The sentences reflect the fact that serious drug crimes under Danish law are treated on a par with murder, where the starting point is 12 years' imprisonment.
Narcotics fill the prisons
Drug crime is the primary reason Danish prisons are overcrowded. A report from the Danish Prison and Probation Service shows that serious drug offences last year accounted for more than 28,000 of the total 82,000 months of unconditional imprisonment handed down. By comparison, violence resulted in nearly 11,000 months of unconditional imprisonment — equivalent to just over one-third of the drug-related figures.
The three defendants and their sentences
The 39-year-old Mohammed Sultan Ahmed, formerly known as Mohammed Nauman Khan, has been found guilty of handling, amongst other things, 37 kilogrammes of cocaine. The High Court assessed that he earned 1.2 million kroner from the criminal activity. He is sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment and is furthermore deported from Denmark permanently. Ahmed is a British citizen, but was born and raised in the country.
30-year-old Daniel Frisch receives a sentence of 13 years, of which two years are outstanding from a previous sentence. He was involved in, amongst other things, 22 kilogrammes of cocaine. The third defendant, 28-year-old Elias Ates, is convicted of approximately 10 kilogrammes of cocaine and receives nine years' imprisonment. Frisch and Ates each have more than 200,000 kroner confiscated, which they earned from the illegal enterprises.
Reduced sentences compared to the district court
The High Court acquitted the three men of several kilogrammes in relation to an earlier judgement handed down by the Glostrup District Court in May 2024, where the sentences were 15, 15 and 11 years. The offences took place in the period from July 2020 to September 2022 and involved, in addition to cocaine, many kilogrammes of cannabis.
When the judgement was delivered, several relatives of the convicted men were present in court. One of the convicted men was asked how things were going before he was handcuffed and led away.
"Quietly and calmly," he answered with a smile.
Source: Politiken