A notorious crime boss nicknamed The Bomber who ran a multi-million-pound drug empire from the comfort of his bulletproof Midlands mansion has been jailed. Irish national Thomas Kavanagh, 54, and his cronies Gary Vickery, 39, and 43-year-old Daniel Canning tried to smuggle £30m worth of drugs into Britain - and saw themselves as "untouchable".
The three men were "very significant players" in the notorious Irish organised crime group known as the Kinahan Cartel. Kavanagh, who was referred to as 'The Gaffer' in text messages, ran the gang's UK operations from his luxury mansion in Tamworth, Staffs, where he lived with his wife and kids.
The property had been fortified with reinforced doors and bulletproof windows, and contained an arsenal of weapons including knives, baseball bats and swords. Police raided the fortress in January 2019 shortly after Kavanagh was arrested at Birmingham Airport while on his way back from a family holiday in Mexico.
They also found bundles of cash totalling £35,000 shoved into bags, draws and down the back of the sofa, along with an illegal stun gun for which Kavanagh received a three year prison sentence. The money bags were in different denominations and currencies including Arab Emirates Dirhams, US dollars, euros and pounds sterling.
Matt Horne, NCA Deputy Director of Investigations, said: "These three men were undoubtedly very significant players. And in many ways we assess that they considered themselves to be untouchable, seeking to protect themselves through the use of encryption and also using coded communication methods to hide the true meaning of their criminal conspiracies. We have however been able to prove that that was not the case and no crime group is above the law."
The raid was part of a "much more complex" investigation into Kavanagh and other gang members, including brothers-in-law Vickery and Canning, dubbed Operation Hornstay. Operation Hornstay began six years ago after Irish police flagged up several freight and logistics firms based in the midlands, which they suspected were involved in shipping drugs and weapons, and had been linked to Vickery, Canning and fellow Irishman Martin Byrne. Byrne died of cancer while on bail.
When they discovered a shipment was scheduled to arrive in the UK in October, they intercepted it at the Port of Dover and found 15 kilos of cocaine and 220 kilos of cannabis concealed inside a six-tonne industrial tarmac removal machine. The shell of an industrial transformer with traces of cocaine inside it was later discovered when police raided two industrial units in Wolverhampton and Wednesbury which were also linked to the three Irishmen.
They were arrested after a black hold all containing a revolver and bullets with Byrne's DNA and fingerprints on them was found at the Wednesbury depot. Five 25 kilo barrels of folic acid powder were later discovered at Vickery's rental property in Boundary Lane, Solihull, which is commonly used as a cocaine cutting agent to bulk out the drugs, as well as a cash counting machine, £43,000 and €200,000 in cash.
Phones and encryption devices seized at Canning's home in Dickens Heath. revealed Kavanagh was heading up the criminal operation. Messages between the group, referring to him as 'the gaffa', showed he had also been in contact with criminals across Europe to orchestrate shipments.
Mr Horne said: "Our analysis of communications between the group showed they had been involved in a number of previous drug imports in 2017, bringing the estimated street value of the cocaine imported to £23.4m and £6.4m in Cannabis. So our analysis is that this crime group has imported £30m worth of drugs into the UK."
The trio pleaded guilty to the offences in July 2020 but due to Covid-19 and Vickery's extradition from Lanzarote, sentencing was delayed. Mr Horne said: "These convictions mark the culmination of a complex, meticulous and detailed six-year investigation. Their organisation was able to organise, import and distribute drugs worth many millions of pounds into the UK. Through their connections overseas and their transport infrastructure they were able to import drugs into the UK again and again on an industrial scale."
The Irish nationals admitted conspiring to import class A and B drugs, and money laundering, while Canning also admitted possessing a firearm and ammunition. Kavanagh was sentenced to 21 years in prison at Ipswich Crown Court earlier today, while Canning was given 19 and a half year and Vickery 20-years.
Mr Horne said: "We have started a proceeds of crime investigation into Kavanagh and his associates with a view of stripping them of any assets that they have acquired through this criminality. This is definitely not the end of national crime agency activity against this crime group and its associates."
Freezing orders have been issued on a number of high-value items, including watches, bikes and jewellery seized from Kavanagh’s Tamworth mansion. Vickery’s property in Spain is also subject to a restraining order.
Kate Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor at the CPS Kate Anderson said: "This organised crime group imported millions of pounds worth of dangerous drugs into the country, concealing them in machinery in a bid to evade detection. They showed no regard for the communities they were putting at risk and pleaded guilty in the face of overwhelming evidence showing their part in this illicit operation. Cases like this demonstrate our commitment to disrupting organised criminal activity - and ensuring they face justice.”
Mr Horne added: "This is definitely not the end of national crime agency activity against this crime group and its associates. I would also like to recognise the strong support we have received from law enforcement partners on this investigation, in particular the Garda. Together the national crime agency and our partners are determined to do all we can to disrupt and dismantle the highest harm organised crime groups."
