01/09/2026
Four people who conspired to convert dozens of weapons into deadly fi****ms inside a Nottingham garage have been jailed.
Blank firing, antique and obsolete guns were all found to have been adapted into viable fi****ms by them as part of the illicit operation.
The aim of the conspiracy was to then supply the now-lethal guns to different criminals based across the city and other parts of the country.
Eleven of these fi****ms – and hundreds of rounds of ammunition – were intercepted by police before they reached their intended targets, however.
That’s after an investigation by the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) put a stop to the conspiracy and placed those involved in handcuffs.
Central to the entire enterprise was a garage at a Bakersfield address, linked to Wren, that was frequently used as a gun conversion workshop.
Two viable fi****ms – a revolver and a converted pistol – and live ammunition were all found inside the garage when we searched it last year.
An array of evidence also pointed to the garage being visited by each of the conspirators as part of their roles – making it a key location for the gun-converting business.
Led by intelligence, we moved in to arrest Iqbal, as well as co-conspirators Wren, Bates, and Wright at their respective homes.
Fi****ms were duly discovered at all the addresses, bar Iqbal's.
The warrants also implicated a fifth man – Trevell Johnson – after Wren’s phone was seized.
Evidence then came to light that another man – Caleb Masiyina – had carried a gun connected to the illegal operation – taking the conspiracy's final tally up to six people.
While 11 fi****ms were ultimately seized as part of the EMSOU investigation, there was evidence that showed at least a further 24 had previously been supplied on top of that.
Among the guns recovered were top-venting blank firer (TVBF) pistols, which have the potential to be converted into viable handguns, so were made illegal in the UK at the start of 2025.
Following the conclusion of the trial, Iqbal, Johnson and Wright were all found guilty of conspiring to convert an imitation firearm into a firearm by a jury on 18 June.
Iqbal, Wren, Bates and Wright returned to Nottingham Crown Court to be sentenced on Tuesday (1 September), where they received a combined 17-and-a-half years behind bars.
• Daniel Wren, 27, of Broad Oak Close, St Ann's, received a six-year prison sentence
• Quisar Iqbal, 33, of Woodborough Road, St Ann's, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison
• Sean Bates, 36, of Nether Pasture, Netherfield, was jailed for four-and-a-half years
• Kerrigan Wright, 35, of Mays Avenue, Bakersfield, was sentenced to two-years in prison
The remaining two conspirators – Johnson, 25, of Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, and Masiyina, 25, of HMP Humber – will both be sentenced at the same court on Friday (4 September).
Detective Superintendent Chris Sullivan added: "Any viable firearm taken out of harm's way from our communities is undoubtedly a good thing.
"Staff and officers across Nottinghamshire Police worked closely with our EMSOU colleagues to achieve this result and I would like to recognise their efforts and contribution to this operation.
"While gun crime in Nottinghamshire thankfully remains very rare, we will never be complacent about this, with this case serving as an example of the lengths criminals can go to in order to break the law.
"Some Italian and Turkish-made top-venting blank firer brands are now banned in the UK because of their potential to be converted into viable weapons.
"The dangers associated with possessing and converting weapons into potentially deadly fi****ms is clear for all to see, so we certainly welcome the prison sentences issued to those involved in this conspiracy."
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