Lockdown cocaine gang planned to shoot rival
BBCTwo men who ran a drugs gang during the coronavirus pandemic and planned to shoot a rival have each been jailed for 14 years.
Stuart Leonard, 40, and James Welch, 41, ran a cocaine and cannabis operation in the Darlington area, liaising with gangs in Newcastle to arrange transport during the pandemic in 2020, Teesside Crown Court heard.
The pair, who tried to arrange the shooting of a man, enlisted security guard John Welsh, 58, to make deliveries, while Robert Wright, 64, was recruited to grow cannabis at his home.
Leonard and Welch each admitted offences including conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and supply class A and B drugs.
The pair used the EncroChat service, which they believed to be an "impenetrable" secure network on specially adapted mobile phones, to arrange the purchase and distribution of "wholesale" amounts of cocaine and other drugs, prosecutor Richard Herrmann said.
Their offending in 2020 was revealed after law enforcement agencies hacked the network in an operation which had also seen many other drug dealers and gangs jailed, the court heard.
'Veneer of legitimacy'
Messages between the men showed they were concerned about the impact of lockdown rules on their ability to move drugs and money, describing the situation as a "mare", the court heard.
They discussed creating a fake courier van or trying to enlist a key worker like a nurse, but in the end used Welsh to drive to Newcastle and collect drugs from Shaun Monaghan, who ran a similar gang in Newcastle and has already been jailed, Herrmann said.
Because of his job as a security officer training other bouncers, Welsh, who was given the nickname Security Man by the gang, was allowed to travel despite the restrictions, the court heard.
"His employment gave him the veneer of legitimacy," Herrmann said, adding Welsh played a "discreet but important role".
On one journey from Darlington to Fenham on 7 April 2020, Welsh delivered £10,000 in cash and 200g of cocaine to Monaghan's gang and returned home with a 1kg block of cocaine and 15 rounds of 9mm ammunition for a Glock handgun, the court heard.
Welsh said he did not know what was in the parcels he was transporting.
Other messages between Leonard and Welch also discussed arranging to shoot and cause really serious harm to another man, Herrmann said.
Fearing the ongoing impact of the lockdown on their criminal business, Leonard and Welch decided to diversify into growing cannabis, the court heard.
They recruited Wright, who they gave the nickname Wrinkles, to grow cannabis plants for them at his home in Darlington and in a neighbouring house accessed through the shared loft space, the court was told.
Herrmann said it was "very much" Leonard and Welch's operation and the pair "made a concerted effort to overcome the difficulties of Covid pandemic lockdowns" to keep on trading.
Wright was jailed for six years and Welsh for three months, suspended for a year, with 200 hours of unpaid work.
