A gang who trafficked millions of pounds worth of heroin and cocaine were brought crashing down by their own loose lips.
Michael Barlow and his men partied in Las Vegas and blew cash in Harrods thanks to the "misery" they spread across the UK. The kingpin also made donations to Catholic churches and a youth club, funded by "the very highest level" Class A drugs.
But police had secretly bugged his BMW and were covertly filming and listening to his men at work in a luxury flat turned drugs factory. Last week, fugitive courier Liam Mills was finally brought to justice after spending the best part of a decade on the run.
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Their racket was rumbled back in 2015 when Barlow, then 34, was recorded bragging in his BMW: "We're up to our eyebrows. We're swimming in gear."
Joseph Graney, then 31, was described as his "right hand man", and a third dealer, Alan Foster, then 43, was the "trusted subordinate" of the gang. They worked from an apartment on Waterside, Princes Dock, where Barlow, Graney, Foster, Graney's twin brother Paul and Mills were secretly recorded as part of Operation Harthill.
Footage captured hundreds of thousands of pounds being counted and kilo-sized blocks of Class A drugs, but not a single fingerprint or item of DNA was found. The "forensically highly aware" gang wore latex gloves as they cut drugs with adulterants, stored cash in a microwave, and operated a drugs press.
Their product was shipped across the UK and the gang made so much money that their counting machine was once recorded operating for two hours straight. When officers sneaked into the flat on several occasions, they discovered tick lists mentioning major deals, sealed mobile phone boxes and SIM cards, boxes and drawers full of cash and took samples of drugs destined for criminals in London and the north east.
On one occasion, Foster was overheard bragging of their lucrative operation: "F***ing hell. There mustn't be any f***ing £20 notes in f***ing Newcastle."
When Barlow talked about a flat being raided and linked to a van, he told Joseph Graney: "We're in big trouble. I've got about five people in jail."
Paul Graney was seen with Barlow, his brother and Mills at Manchester Airport on September 3 - when they jetted off to Las Vegas and didn't return until September 14. Their ring was estimated to have netted profits of around £1,000 per week.
Barlow holidayed in Dubai and dropped big sums in Harrods and on designer shoes for his mistress, thanks to his ill-gotten gains. But the rail recruitment boss also gifted dirty cash to churches and community projects - making donations to St Francis Xavier and St Peter's Catholic churches, as well as Shrewsbury House youth club in Everton.
Following a series of raids in July 2016, Barlow - of Latimer Street in Vauxhall - was jailed for 16 years. Joseph Graney, of Snowdon Lane in Vauxhall, received 14 years and Foster, of Marnell Close in Vauxhall, was imprisoned for eight years.
Paul Graney, also of Snowdon Lane Vauxhall, spent four years in Holland as a fugitive - during which time he was jailed in Amsterdam for drug smuggling. He was finally extradited home in June 2020, following a controversial legal dispute involving Dutch judges and the British authorities, and was jailed for 10 years.
Liverpool Crown Court heard a further two-and-a-half years later on Friday, January 27, that now 31-year-old Mills - of Herm Road in Vauxhall - was responsible for couriering 2kg of class A drugs to Newcastle from the gang's Princes Dock "safehouse" on July 10 2015. The "trusted courier" collected £133,000 during another trip north on July 22, then took delivery of a smaller amount of cash on July 28.
Martin Reid, prosecuting, described how he had been entrusted with the keys to the organised crime group's waterfront flat and was found in possession of a stun gun disguised to look like mobile phone upon his arrest. The defendant was released on bail to appear before magistrates in early 2016 after being charged with drug trafficking offences.
But he instead booked a one-way train ticket from London St Pancras to Brussels before starting a new life in the Holland. A European arrest warrant was issued in 2018, and Mills was ultimately arrested in Amsterdam and extradited back to UK on November 16 last year.
The dad, who worked as an electrician before his brush with the law, has no previous convictions. Paul Kilty, defending, told the court: "He made a stupid series of decisions, embroiling himself in something that was already ongoing.
"He was working and staying out of trouble in Holland, he had a partner and they have a son together. He made the decision that it was time to come have and face the consequences, and thereafter move on with life and be the person he is now rather than the younger man involved in serious criminality."
Mills admitted two counts of conspiracy to supply class A drugs, possession of a prohibited weapon and breaching bail. He was jailed for seven years and seven months.
Sentencing, Judge David Aubrey KC said: "Having left the UK, there is no suggestion that whilst you were in Holland for a number of years you were doing anything - albeit as a fugitive - but leading an honest life. Justice has now caught up with you, and therefore this court is obliged to sentence you for your involvement in this conspiracy.
"This was a long-standing conspiracy. It appears to have been a sophisticated, well-organised conspiracy.
"I am satisfied that you were a trusted courier. Once you have served the inevitable custodial sentence you can lead and have the potential to lead a law-abiding life."
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