A MASSIVE organised crime gang who trafficked millions of pounds of 'high-purity' cocaine branded with a distinctive tiger logo have been brought down by undercover cops.
A total of 16 members of the Middleton-based OCG who supplied drugs across the north of England are now behind bars after a threeyear investigation by Greater Manchester Police's serious organised crime squad.
Their downfall came after cops launched '13 simultaneous strikes' on homes across Greater Manchester this summer.
Det Sgt Mark Rigby described the operation as an 'exhaustive investigation' which is testament to 'years of hard work! The gang's kingpins Jonathan Smith and Louis Cleworth first came to the police's attention when undercover cops found they were in regular contact with James Mulligan, head of the notorious Mulligan crime family from Tameside. The day after Mulligan was arrested in October 2021, Smith went to ground.
He stopped using his mobile phone and appeared to stop using his car, as it was no longer getting picked up by the police's automatic number plate recognitions systems.
In fact the gang had replaced him with Jacob Smith, who took over his courier role.
But by March 2022, believing the police investigation had hit a wall following Mulligan's arrest, Jonathan Smith swaggered back to work.
However unbeknown to him, police had his entire gang under surveillance. Between September 1, 2021 and July 20, 2022, when police launched the raids on gang members' homes, it's thought they were responsible for moving at least 75 kilos of high purity cocaine, with an estimated street sale value of £7.5m.
But the total amount is thought to be far higher.
Police say the gang had customers based across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, and West Yorkshire.
Detectives gathered evidence of around 150 deliveries that were made from Middleton.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 21, 2024 من Manchester Evening News.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 21, 2024 من Manchester Evening News.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Fearnley learning from best despite defeat
TENNIS Jacob Fearnley wants to keep learning from the best after his fine Australian Open debut was ended by a straight-sets loss to second seed Alexander Zverev in the third round.
LIVERPOOL BOSS SLOT ON HAA'S BUMPER DEAL
ARNE Slot will tell his Liverpool side to use Erling Haaland's bumper new contract as a reminder of the levels they need to achieve if they want to win the Premier League.
Work on new homes 'is happening at last'
AFTER almost 15 years of staring at rubble, residents in Derker are about to see their neighbourhood transformed.
Dog's fur so matted it hurt to be stroked
A PET owner let his elderly dog's fur get so matted it hurt her to be stroked, the RSPCA has said.
Food firm fined £573k after workers are injured
A FOOD manufacturer has been fined more than £500,000 after three workers suffered serious hand and arm injuries when they became trapped in machinery.
'Proud' Watson forced to retire
England and Leicester wing Anthony Watson has been forced to retire from professional rugby on medical grounds.
Centre car park to close for up to year
A SHOPPING centre car park is set to close for up to 12 months despite traders saying last year that it could be \"catastrophic\" for local businesses.
Delight as Ole's back at the wheel
UNITED legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is closing in on a return to management with Turkish giants Besiktas.
Haaland's Pep talk convinced striker to commit rest of career to Blues
A CHAT with Pep Guardiola and the City board convinced Erling Haaland to effectively commit the rest of his career to the Blues.
HOW DID CITY KEEP ONE OF BIGGEST DEALS IN FOOTBALL HISTORY OUT OF THE MEDIA SPOTLIGHT?
EVEN Pep Guardiola was speechless when Txiki Begiristain called him to confirm a deal had been agreed with Erling Haaland over his sensational ten-year contract.
