A family-run bistro owner, his son and his brother have been jailed after being convicted of running an organised cocaine dealing operation coordinated via WhatsApp. Rezart Balesi, 44, was identified as the "senior figure" and used his Village Bistro premises in Greenmount, Bury, as a hub for the enterprise, while his brother Refail and son Joshua ran a mobile "deal line" directing street dealers to make deliveries. The case, heard at Manchester Crown Court, matters as it highlights how organised crime groups exploit legitimate businesses and encrypted messaging to run profitable drug operations while drawing in family members, including a teenager.

Rezart Balesi received seven years and six months, Refail Balesi five years and three months, and Joshua Balesi four years, with the judge noting the operation could generate £9,000 in a single night and involved bulk cocaine purchases worth £36,000. Several co-conspirators, including street dealers and one man involved in a separate cannabis-growing plot, were also sentenced to terms ranging from 27 months to four years, with one facing deportation. The conspiracy ran from May 2024 to March 2026, and police described it as a "significant organised crime group" causing harm to local communities; a related figure remains at large, while charges against Rezart's wife were dropped.