Birmingham drug line duo face life sentence for savage moseley street murder

Two Birmingham men convicted of murder after vicious street attack leaves Craig Dean dead, following drug line dispute and violent beating outside his home. Hamza Khan, 23, of Anderton Park Road, Moseley, and Mohammed Rahman, 25, of Mapleton Grove, Hall Green, were found guilty by a jury at Birmingham Crown Court of killing Craig Dean, also known as “Yankee”, following an assault on Springfield Road, Moseley, on 7 July last year. Dean died in hospital two days later after life support was withdrawn, having never regained consciousness.

The court heard that the events leading up to the attack began with an argument conducted by text message earlier that day. Prosecutors said Dean had been in contact with the defendants, who were operating a drugs line known as “Ace”, and that tensions had developed over drug supply.

At about 4.50pm, Khan drove a black Vauxhall Corsa to Springfield Road with Rahman in the front passenger seat. Both men got out of the car and confronted Dean as he stood outside his address. The jury was told that the confrontation quickly escalated into violence, with both defendants striking Dean and knocking him to the ground before repeatedly kicking him as he lay on the pavement. The pair then returned to the vehicle and drove away, leaving him seriously injured.

Although the assault was not captured on CCTV, it was witnessed by passers-by. When emergency services attended, Dean was found with wraps of heroin and crack cocaine in his hand, the court was told.

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Despite medical treatment, Dean could not be saved and died two days later from his injuries.

During the trial, both defendants denied murder and an alternative count of manslaughter. They accepted being present during a violent incident but claimed Dean had been the aggressor and that they had acted in lawful self-defence. The jury rejected that account, accepting the prosecution case that the force used was unlawful and intended to cause at least serious harm.

The court heard that Dean had previously told his partner that those running the Ace drugs line were angry because a customer had ordered drugs from them before using a different supplier.

Following the attack, police carried out CCTV trawls and other inquiries which led them to the Vauxhall Corsa used by the defendants. The vehicle was located a short distance away, and forensic examination of drink cans found inside revealed DNA matching both Khan and Rahman.