A man who opened fire on his rivals during a drive-by shooting following a bitter feud has been jailed for 15 years.

Mohammed Nasir Alam, aged 27, of Heywood Street, Cheetham Hill, left one man with a bullet wound to his head and another victim with a chest wound when he opened fire on September 22, 2007.

He was yesterday found guilty of two counts of attempted murder, perverting the course of justice and two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life following a trial at Chester Crown Court.

The judge ordered him to serve at least 15 years in prison.

On September 4, 2007, Alam made a false allegation of robbery against a man he had been feuding with for years. When that attempt to get one member of this family into trouble failed, he decided to act more aggressively.

He armed himself with a Russian Baikal 9mm tear gas pistol that had been converted to fire bullets and on September 22 he attacked.

While in a silver Ford Mondeo, he opened fire on a group of men including the man he had tried to frame. One man was shot in the head and the other struck twice in the chest, but luckily neither died.

The incident happened outside a chip shop at about 11.15pm on Woodfield Road, Cheetham Hill.

The victims and their friends were parked in a Volkswagen Golf when they saw the silver car pull up with Alam as a passenger in the front seat. Several shots were fired.

Alam fled but was eventually arrested in June this year and charged. During his interview, he denied any involvement in the shooting and claimed he was at work with his family.

Detective Inspector Alistair Mallen, based at Grey Mare Lane CID, said: "I am delighted that we have achieved this conviction and that Alam will be behind bars for at least 15 years.

"It was a painstaking process to get to today. Alam originally went on the run after the shooting but we never gave up. I hope that if anything, today's verdict shows that Greater Manchester Police continue to hunt down criminals even when they try to escape justice and the message is clear: 'When we find you, and we will find you, you will be punished.'

"Alam's actions were absolutely frightening and we could have been dealing with a number of fatalities. The fact no-one died is by chance, not design, and Alam's intentions were clear. He intended to kill his victims. His murderous actions could have left a trail of devastation with families mourning their loved ones, so it is only right and proper he will serve such a long time behind bars.

"Through Operation Xcalibre, we are working very hard to rid guns from our communities and we have dramatically reduced the number of shootings in Greater Manchester. We will continue to do this to make the streets safe for law-abiding members of our community."