Show-off drug lord's gang sold £3m of cocaine in 6 months

A FLASH cocaine boss who bragged that he'd be a 'millionaire' in a few years is beginning a 16-year jail sentence.

- ANDREW BARDSLEY

Daniel Buckley, 35, thought he was untouchable as he made staggering amounts of money through large-scale drug dealing.

During a six-month period, his organised crime gang sold more than 80 kilos of cocaine worth around £3.3m, a court heard. They were also involved in trafficking amphetamine.

Buckley, from Newton Heath, even bought a gun and ammunition in a bid to protect himself from other gangs, all the while enjoying a lavish lifestyle' funded by crime.

He enjoyed expensive holidays, bought designer trainers made by high-end brands including Balenciaga and Dolce and Gabbana, had a £10,000 Rolex watch, and a £55,000 Mercedes on his drive.

"Buckley bragged in messages that he would be a millionaire in just a few years, and that he wanted a villa in Spain and to be a resident in Dubai," prosecutors said at Manchester Crown Court.

But Buckley's world came crashing down after European law enforcement infiltrated the encrypted EncroChat communications system on which he conducted his underworld affairs.