A dad who gave up a big-money criminal lifestyle for the sake of his baby daughter has been living in a Maidstone hostel for three years while begging the council to give him a house.

Sohail Saleem was so well connected in Manchester’s notorious Moss Side area he claims he could secure loans of £50,000 by making a single phone call.

He drove a Mercedes, wore a Rolex watch and rented a £1,000-a-month flat in No 1 Deansgate, one of the most expensive addresses in Manchester.

He had also accumulated 63 convictions for drugs and firearms offences.

But he turned his back on it all after his little girl Princess was taken away from her mother and he was refused custody due to his criminal record.

Now Sohail, whose convictions were spent in 2011, is determined to turn his life around so Princess, four, can decide whether she wants to be reunited with her father at 18.

But he is currently in limbo – homeless and unable to get a job.

The 30-year-old said: “If I got a job it would only be in a warehouse or something. I would have to give the hostel £100 a week and I would have to be out after 16 weeks. I might not have a council house by then and that’s not long enough to save a deposit.

“Plus all the properties need a guarantor, and I’ve not got one. I’m going down the right channels. I can’t believe it’s this hard to do the right thing.

“My mum kicked me out when I was 11. It wasn’t her fault, I was stubborn and arrogant and didn’t listen" - Sohail Saleem

"I don’t want to go back to crime. I’ve been good for four years. I don’t gamble, drink or do drugs and I’m trying to give up the cigarettes. I’ve changed so much I’ve amazed myself.”

Sohail blames no one but himself.

He said: “My mum kicked me out when I was 11. It wasn’t her fault, I was stubborn and arrogant and didn’t listen.

"I chose the lifestyle. I went to the biggest, baddest man and I became his runner. I had everything. I earnt my stripes. I was doing coke and pills, drinking Rémy Martin and Grey Goose and driving fast cars.”

But losing his daughter provided the wake-up call he needed to change his life. Sohail moved to Maidstone to be with his partner, now his wife, and after sleeping in his car for three months ended up in a hostel owned by Ashdown Medway Accommodation Trust.

Sohail has no regrets about leaving, saying: “Most people don’t leave Moss Side unless it’s 6ft under or doing 27 to life in Strangeways.

"I’m a captain in Manchester, I have authority. I made a name for myself because I thought, if I have children I want them to be able to walk down the street without getting robbed.

“But it was all spiralling out of control. I changed my life for my daughter. Money and power are nothing without family.”

A Maidstone council spokesman said the authority’s housing allocation scheme takes into account a wide range of issues including housing need and local connections.

An applicant may be found ineligible for accommodation if they, or a joint applicant, are considered unsuitable as a tenant, for example if there are significant previous or current rent arrears.

The spokesman said: “We have received a letter from Mr Saleem’s support worker, along with confirmation from Mr Saleem his circumstances have changed, and a review of the case will take place as soon as possible.”

If it is decided Mr Saleem has a housing need, he will be placed on the register so he can start bidding on available properties.

If he has to leave the hostel before a council house becomes available, another possibility is help through the Maidstone HomeFinder Bond Scheme, which helps people apply for private rented properties without having to have a cash deposit.

The latest figures available from the Ministry of Justice suggest more than a quarter of offenders are likely to re-offend within a year.

In the 12 months ending in September 2013, 518,424 adult and juvenile offenders were either cautioned, convicted (excluding immediate custodial sentences) or released from custody.

Of those people, 136,937 of them – 26.4% – had committed another crime within a year.

On average, each re-offender is likely to commit three crimes in those 12 months.

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