Photographs and
footage available
A network of career criminals who were planning to flood the
streets with drugs have been jailed for a total of over 44 years
following a joint operation between UK and overseas law
enforcement agencies.
The quantities of drugs they were going to import were so large
they bought an industrial cement mixer to help them bulk the drugs
with cutting agents.
Anthony Spencer, aged 61, of Keresley, Coventry, who has been in
and out of prison for over 40 years for drugs, firearms, fraud and
theft, was head of the 15-strong network. He was jailed again
today for another five years three months at Birmingham Crown
Court after pleading guilty to conspiracies to supply and import
amphetamine and cannabis.
The Serious Organised Crime Agency worked jointly with
Warwickshire Police, West Midlands Police and the Dutch Police to
dismantle the entire network.
Spencer and his criminal associates were under surveillance for
months. Officers watched meetings at locations in Coventry,
Sheffield, Kent and Amsterdam. They saw the gang burying
purpose-built safes which could store up to 140 kilos of drugs,
filmed a cash handover, and watched as drugs changed hands.
Intelligence sharing with the Dutch Police led to the discovery
of a farm in Zwanenburg, Amsterdam, which was being used as a
drugs warehouse, and a flat in Ijplein, Amsterdam, that officers
described as 'an Aladdin’s cave' of drugs
paraphernalia, including a pill making machine. Class A and class
B drugs were also recovered.
Spencer and the network’s Dutch contingent were arrested in
January 2009 when a team of heavily armed officers used a
bulldozer to get into the farm. One hundred kilos of amphetamine
and fifty kilos of cannabis were seized. Spencer was extradited to
the UK in April 2009. At this point, officers moved in to arrest
the UK end of the operation.
They recovered the cement mixer from a caravan in Coventry. Four
buried safes were found - two at Spencer’s home, one at a derelict
site at Castle Road, Nuneaton, and one in the garden of a house in
Synkere Close, Coventry.
Evidence indicates that the gang was planning to significantly
increase the scale of their operation. Early success in bringing
amphetamine and cannabis into the UK had led to considerable
investment in the logistics for transporting, storing and
distributing much larger quantities of all classes of drugs. At
the time of Spencer’s arrest, he was talking about importing two
to three loads a week.
SOCA Deputy Director Andy Sellers said:
"These are career criminals who wanted to make a lot of
money through drug trafficking with no regard for the harm they
would cause communities and individuals. They spent a long time
planning how they were going to flood the UK with vast quantities
of drugs but we were one step ahead of them. We were watching
their every move and the evidence obtained was so strong they had
no choice but to plead guilty”.
Seven members of
Spencer’s network, all of whom have previous convictions, pleaded
guilty to a mixture of conspiracy to supply and import offences
and were sentenced today as well:
Christopher Pollock, 37, of Exhall, Coventry, was a trusted
member of Spencer’s network. He was involved in organising the
delivery of drugs and controlled some of the stash locations.
Pollock was seen visiting Spencer’s home address on a daily basis
and at numerous meetings with other network members and dealers.
He was jailed for three years three months. Upon completion of his
sentence, Pollock will be extradited to Spain to serve a six-year
sentence for drug trafficking.
Jogendranath Rajcoomar, 57, of Exhall, Coventry, who was a former
prison governor, provided financial and logistical support for the
network. He made large cash deposits into his accounts to fund
Spencer’s travel to and from Holland. One of the safes was found
in his garden. A large number of mobile phones and SIM cards were
also recovered. Sentenced to three years nine months.
Sunil Rajcoomar, 25, of no fixed abode, is Jogendranath’s son and
is also from the Coventry area. He was involved in the movement
and stashing of drugs in the UK and Holland. After receiving
Western Union payments from his father, he paid a month’s rent on
the farm being used in Amsterdam. He was regularly seen with
Spencer. Sentenced to two years.
Michael McGlinchey, 58, of Coventry, had a long association with
Spencer and was a trusted member of his network. He drove cars to
Amsterdam for Spencer to use, booked travel, and was seen at a
number of meetings. During a search of his address officers
recovered five kilos of cannabis. Sentenced to three years two months.
John Mitchell, 40, of Greenhithe, Kent, was used by Spencer
because of his links to the transport industry. He was going to
make arrangements for lorry drivers to bring Spencer’s drugs into
the UK. Officers recovered two kilos of amphetamine from a freezer
in an outhouse at his home. Sentenced to four years three months.
Mark Adderley, 52, of Harbourne, Birmingham, was a close
associate of Spencer and was involved in the importation of
controlled drugs. He travelled with Spencer to Amsterdam and met
him on numerous occasions. Sentenced to three years nine months.
Stephen Lismore, 41, of Grantham, Lincolnshire, had known Spencer
for a number of years. He transported drugs for the network and
was seen handing a box containing five kilos of amphetamine to a
man called Thomas Andrews at a meeting in Sheffield. The drugs
were later seized. Sentenced to three years two months.
The Dutch Police prosecuted five members of the network who were
jailed for a total of 15 years. Two of these were British
nationals from Coventry who were living in Amsterdam – Simon Ford
and David Woodings.
Thomas Andrews who received the five kilos of amphetamine from
Lismore pleaded guilty to possession of amphetamine with intent to
supply. He is being dealt with by South Yorkshire Police and will
be sentenced at a later date. The fifteenth member of the network
is due to stand trial in June for money laundering offences.
During the investigation officers found numerous copies of a
comic book publication entitled ‘Him and Hers Smuggling Vacation’,
which was written by Spencer’s son, and credited Spencer as the
crime consultant. Copies also appeared at nearly every location
where search warrants were executed as well as in the box of
amphetamine Lismore delivered to Andrews in Sheffield.
Deputy Director Andy Sellers added: "The success of this
operation is down to joint working with police forces here and
overseas. SOCA is committed to tackling drug trafficking and we
will continue to work with our partners to dismantle criminal
networks. Our message to other criminals is a simple one - if you
come onto SOCA's radar, you stay on it for life."
Detective Superintendent Noel McMenamin, from Warwickshire
Police, said: "These convicted individuals were members
of an organised crime group intent on importing large amounts of
controlled drugs into the UK. This protracted and complex
investigation demonstrates how effectively Warwickshire Police
operate with our partner agencies, on a regional, national and
international basis, to protect our communities from harm.
“Further action to recover their criminal assets will now take
place under the Proceeds of Crime act. This investigation is just
one example of a number of very successful operations carried out
by the Warwickshire Police Serious and Organised Crime Team, in
collaboration with SOCA and West Midlands Police, and reflects our
continued commitment to deter and detect serious and organised crime."
To view the photographs that accompany this press
release, please follow the link below;
http://nds.coi.gov.uk/Content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=413144&NewsAreaID=2&ClientID=297
Notes to Editors
1. Pictures of all the criminals, the drugs, the warehouse in
Holland, the cement mixer, the safes and the comic book are all
available by contacting the SOCA Press Office.
For more information contact the SOCA press office.
Contacts:
NDS Enquiries
Phone: For enquiries please contact the above department
ndsenquiries@coi.gsi.gov.uk
Press Office
Phone: 0870 268 8100
pressoffice@soca.x.gsi.gov.uk