Farhan Khan was married two years ago after fleeing the UK – and his city councillor brother Saqib Khan and his parents were there
Farhan Khan, a wanted Birmingham fugitive, who got married in the Mirpur village of Dadyal with members of his family present(Image: Thames Valley Police)
A Birmingham fugitive who was part of a massive illegal drug running operation is freely enjoying married life in Pakistan, with police apparently powerless to act to bring him to justice.
Farhan Khan, formerly of Floyer Road, Small Heath, has been living in the Azad Kashmiri town of Dadyal after fleeing during a high-profile police investigation into a city drugs ring.
He married two years ago while on the run, protected by the fact the UK does not have a full extradition treaty with Pakistan.
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Now it has emerged the Birmingham-based family of Farhan – including his city councillor brother Saqib and his father, prominent community figure Ayaz – flew out to join his wedding celebrations in Dadyal in 2023, apparently without knowing of his criminal wrongdoing.
They claimed they were unaware at the time that Farhan was being hunted by Thames Valley Police.
The revelation came to light after social media photos were passed to local news website The Dispatch showing the Khan family at the wedding.
Coun Khan, who represents Small Heath, told BirminghamLive he had ‘no idea’ his brother was on the run or involved in the high-profile investigation.
Councillor Saqib Khan
He claimed he only found out when his brother was later convicted in his absence at Aylesbury Crown Court in February 2024, after police gave up on him returning to face justice.
Coun Khan also claimed he had only attended the wedding because he happened to be in Pakistan at the time on other personal business. “I have had nothing to do with my brother for several years,” he said.
His criminal brother, now 31, was convicted on two counts of conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin and was jailed in absentia for 51 months. The court was told he had been stopped in a car full of drugs in 2019 and gave police his brother Saqib’s name as an alias.
He later fled the country and was charged in 2021 as part of a wider investigation. He was one of 20 people sentenced to a total of 65 years in prison for drugs offences in connection with the operation.
Farhan Khan will be jailed if he ever sets foot in the UK again.
His councillor brother has just been reselected as a Labour candidate in the council’s elections next year, despite misgivings voiced by some in the Labour ranks. That was because he was recently reprimanded for attempting to intimidate fellow councillor Shabina Bano into casting a vote in an internal leadership election for his preferred candidate and called out for breaching the councillor code of conduct.
Images were shared in Facebook posts in June 2023 and tagged with the village as their location from the wedding day. They have been seen by BirminghamLive. The posts have since been deleted.
Farhan Khan, right, pictured in a 2023 Facebook post, with his father Ayaz
In a statement, Coun Khan said: “I have always cooperated fully with the police in regards to my brother and have provided any information I have about his whereabouts to the police.
“I only became aware of the nature of the investigation into him and the crimes he was found guilty of from media reports in 2024 following his conviction. I have not spoken to my brother since 2023.”
Det Con Laurie Twine, of Thames Valley Police, vowed last year to bring Farhan Khan back to the UK. She said after the conviction: “This was the result of a lengthy investigation, and I am pleased the defendant has finally been convicted despite his attempts to evade justice and deceive the courts.
Farhan Khan in a police image from Thames Valley Police
“If he had not done so, and pleaded guilty at an early opportunity, he would likely have been released already. Instead, he is now unable to return to the UK without facing a lengthy period in prison and we will work with other countries to ensure that he faces justice.”
The UK and Pakistan do not have a formal extradition treaty in place. They instead rely on ‘Memorandums of Understanding’ for specific cases in either direction. In 2022, the two countries signed a separate, reciprocal agreement focused on the repatriation of foreign criminals and immigration offenders from the UK to Pakistan, rather than a broad extradition treaty.
We have approached Thames Valley Police for an update on the case.