Two Royal Marine commandos were part of a £300,000 plot that saw drugs ferried from Merseyside to Scotland.
Grant Broadfoot and Stuart Bryant signed out a Ministry of Defence van on the pretence of visiting shooting ranges at Altcar Training Camp in Hightown. But the naval officers were secretly using the MOD vehicle to collect cannabis from a location on the outskirts of Formby and move it north of the border.
Grant Broadfoot also abused his role as an ammunitions storeman to sell rounds from Royal Navy base HM Faslane to potential buyers via EncroChat. Using the handle "VeteranPants" the 29-year-old boasted that he could source bullets for machine guns and semi-automatic pistols including Glocks.
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But the Royal Marines' drug plot unravelled as part of an investigation that also snared Walton cocaine, heroin and cannabis trafficker, Jacob Bullen, aka EncroChat drug courier "HeroicFox". And it ended when police acting on "reliable and credible intelligence" caught the pair red handed with 30 vacuum-sealed bags of cannabis.
This week, Glasgow's High Court heard how Grant Broadfoot and 31-year-old Bryant's crimes took place between November 2019 and June 2020, our sister paper the Daily Record reports. They were unearthed by military police working with Merseyside Police as part of an investigation into Grant Broadfoot activities titled 'Operation Final'.
Officers were informed that drugs would be transported from Merseyside to Scotland in a Transit van owned by the MOD. The Transit van, driven by Grant Broadfoot, and a Renault van, driven by Bryant, were seen to pull up alongside each other in Glasgow's Mount Vernon district on June 3, 2020.
John McElroy, prosecuting, said: "Police officers formed the opinion that a drugs handover was taking place. "Bryant was seen standing at the rear side of the Transit. Grant Broadfoot was seen removing a black holdall from it to the rear of the Renault van."
Both men were halted by officers and Grant Broadfoot told them: "It's nothing to do with me." His 62-year-old father, Ian Broadfoot, was found sitting in the driver's seat of the Renault.
A search of the Transit van recovered 11 vacuum sealed bags of cannabis, while the Renault contained 19 bags. Grant Broadfoot's then home in the city's Baillieston area was raided and £27,370 of cash was discovered in a brown box.
A search of his dad's property in Mount Vernon revealed £21,030 in mixed notes, a vacuum sealer machine and a bag of cannabis. There was also other drug paraphernalia stashed in his garage.
When quizzed by police, Bryant claimed he was told to pick up "unknown" items near an MOD training camp in Merseyside in exchange for money. The court heard Bryant said he was "suffering significant financial difficulty" and Grant Broadfoot had offered him cash to carry out the task.
Mr McElroy said: "The 30 bags recovered have a total value of approximately £114,000. The bag [from Ian Broadfoot's property] weighing 182.52 grams has a value of approximately £1,000. The maximum financial community impact if all cannabis recovered was divided into street deals has the potential to realise approximately £301,820."
Grant Broadfoot's accommodation at Faslane was searched and a Tesco bag containing live ammunition, casing and a large bullet was recovered. The EncroChat hack revealed that Grant Broadfoot conducted his operations on the secret phone network under the handle "VeteranPants".
Examples of Grant Broadfoot's conversations from March to June 2020 were read to the court. They included organising money drop offs and directing drivers, including Bryant, who was unable to perform a job on one occasion due to contracting coronavirus.
Mr McElroy said: "In April 2020, Grant Broadfoot appears to be offering to supply ammunition. The significance being that he had access to ammunition at Faslane Naval due to his position as an ammunitions storeman."
Grant Broadfoot was quoted as telling a potential buyer: "Put the feelers out and if you get a bite I'll get them, I'm in control of the ammunition. It's just me and a couple of other boys here though, I'd need to file the batch number off each round."
He was also noted as telling another contact: "I can sort you out with ammo...I've got contacts available. I've got 7.62 machine gun rounds, 5.56 semi-automatic rounds and 9mm Glock rounds."
In May 2020, Grant Broadfoot told a contact "I have ministry of defence vans" and explained how he signed them out when he needed them, under the pretence of visiting the shooting ranges at Altcar. The court heard he was also seen to arrange the collection of drugs "using MOD transport" in June 2020.
Mr McElroy said Bryant's conversations also revealed he had "a much bigger role in transporting drugs". One contact even compared him to Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
Grant Broadfoot, of Tollcross, Glasgow, admitted being involved in serious organised crime, which included offering to supply cannabis and buying, selling and supplying ammunition. His barrister, John Scullion, QC, made no application for bail.
Bryant, of Galston, East Ayrshire, admitted producing cannabis and being concerned in the supply of cannabis. Louise Arrol, defending Bryant, said: "He was in the Royal Navy for a number of years and has impressive references. He recognises, given the offences, he knows he will receive a custodial sentence."
Ian Broadfoot, of Mount Vernon, Glasgow, pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cannabis. Allan Macleod, defending Ian Broadfoot, said: "It is accepted that he was not involved in the exchanging going on - he just happened to be there."
The judge, Lady Rae, deferred sentencing pending background reports on the defendants until next month. Grant Broadfoot and Bryant were remanded in custody, while Ian Broadfoot was granted bail.
