Bradford drug trafficker who tortured uncle to death jailed for life
Leeds Crown Court 42 year old Tahir Syed was involved in importing approximately £125m worth of heroin and cocaine hidden inside frozen chicken.
Last updated 13th Jun 2025
An international drug dealer has been jailed for life for drugs offences and killing his uncle, whose body was found inside a disused bank in Batley.
Leeds Crown Court 42 year old Tahir Syed was involved in importing approximately £125m worth of heroin and cocaine hidden inside frozen chicken.
More than 30 shipments were sent between 2016 and 2021 from the Netherlands to a store in Bradford.
Syed fled the UK after several co-conspirators were arrested in 2019, but returned a few months later to confront his uncle, 39 year old bus driver Asghar Badshah, who he believed has stolen around £600,000 from him.
He paid for Badshah to undergo a lie detector test and, when he failed, had the 39 year old kidnapped and taken to a disused bank in Batley.
There he was interrogated and tortured, suffering almost 50 blunt force injuries to his head, neck, torso, and all four limbs.
His body was discovered inside a vault a month later, in December 2019.
Syed again fled the UK travelling to Albania and then onto Turkey using a fake passport.
He was arrested there in November 2021 following a global manhunt and was brought back to the UK two years later to face trial.
Syed will serve a minimum of 34 years following his sentencing earlier today (June 13).
Detective Chief Superintendent Heather Whoriskey, of West Yorkshire Police, said:
"Syed kidnapped, tortured and murdered his own Uncle for information as he believed that Asghar had stolen money from him.
"This perceived debt was about more than just money, it was about Syed's reputation and role as an international drug trafficker.
"Syed was a professional criminal who would import and distribute huge amounts of cocaine and heroin.
"Shortly after the murder Syed fled the country and continued to traffic drugs across the continent.
"Today's sentence is the culmination of years of hard work. We would like to thank our partners at the National Crime Agency for assisting us in bringing Syed back to this country to face his crimes.
"This has been a lengthy and trying ordeal for the family of Asghar Badshah. They have been courageous, patient and brave throughout the whole process.
"Although today's sentence will never bring him back, I hope it gives his family some comfort and closure knowing that the man responsible for his death has been sentenced for his murder."
Ten other people have also been jailed for their roles in the drugs conspiracy.