Suspects charged after violent dispute between Rochdale organised crime groups

Photo: Google, DigitalGlobe

The incident happened at the junction of Bentley Street and Shawclough Road

Two men from Rochdale have appeared in court accused of conspiracy to murder as part of an investigation into serious and organised crime in the town.

Jake Horrocks, 20, of Castleton, and Wahaab Mushtaq, 20, of Rochdale, appeared at Manchester Magistrates' Court yesterday (Wednesday 9 February) charged with conspiracy to murder, attempt murder, and participating in the activities of an organised crime group (OCG).

Mushtaq has also been charged with violent disorder and criminal damage.

The pair's arrest on Tuesday 8 February means 24 men and women have been arrested as part of Op Chicago - a wide-ranging investigation spearheaded by detectives from the town's Challenger team tackling serious and organised crime.

Investigators have been probing a series of reported incidents between two feuding groups - including an alleged machete attack on Bentley Street in October that left a man in his 20s with life-changing injuries.
 

Read more: Huge organised crime blitz sees over a dozen arrested in Rochdale before dawnPublished: 08 December 2021

Read more: 21-year-old man in life-threatening condition after machete attackPublished: 06 October 2021