850 years in jail for criminals and £70m-worth of drugs seized by specialist Merseyside team
29.07.26 - Merseyside
More than 100 criminals linked to drug and gun crime in Merseyside have been jailed, as a result of investigations by a specialist team formed in 2021.
One-hundred-and-eight criminals are serving 851 years in prison for crimes including importing drugs, supplying guns and laundering money linked to serious and organised crime.
Officers from Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership (OCP) have seized cocaine, heroin, cannabis and ketamine worth up to £70m.
The OCP, composed of officers from Merseyside Police and the National Crime Agency, has taken 33 firearms off the streets, secured the forfeiture of £1.8m criminal cash, and identified a further £51 million in criminal benefit which is subject to confiscation proceedings.
Merseyside OCP, which was formed in April 2021 as part of the government’s 10-year drug strategy, protects the public by tackling high-risk organised crime groups using Merseyside as a hub for criminality.
The team uses a range of specialist tactics and capabilities, collaborating with local police teams – including Merseyside Police’s Matrix Disruption Unit and the Firearms Investigation Team – as well as wider UK and international law enforcement partners, to target organised criminals dealing in drugs and firearms.
The 108 offenders jailed between April 2021 and March 2026 as a result of Merseyside OCP investigations, include:
• a gang of eight men and women who ran a 24/7 cocaine supply service, offering the drug to around 9,000 contacts in Liverpool;
• a man stopped with the biggest single seizure of ketamine in the UK in his van;
• a highly secretive kingpin who plotted to smuggle a ton of cocaine into Liverpool;
• a man caught red-handed in the back of a taxi with a firearm and live ammunition;
• a crime family that traded millions of pounds-worth of heroin, cannabis and cocaine.
The NCA’s Jon Hughes, joint head of Merseyside OCP, said: “Drugs are the number one driver of serious crime in the UK, fuelling violence and anti-social behaviour on the streets and domestic abuse in homes.
“Organised drug gangs have considered Merseyside to be a key hub to operate in, but the Organised Crime Partnership is making the area hostile for criminals.
“We’ve combined the unique skills and international experience of the National Crime Agency with the crucial local knowledge and specialist capabilities of Merseyside Police officers to stop individuals from the bottom to the top of organised crime gangs.
“My message to organised criminals is that Merseyside is not a safe place for you to ply your criminal trade in - it is an area where you run the real risk of being arrested by my team and jailed if you do.”
Merseyside Police’s Det Supt Tony Roberts, co-lead of the OCP, said: “Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership has struck a blow to criminals in the county. Every day we are closing the net on more criminals who are intent on committing serious and organised offences in the area.
“Our specialist officers are using every tactic available to them and working with police in the UK and overseas in order to stop drugs and firearms being brought into and distributed from Merseyside. We’re also hitting criminals where it really hurts by depriving them of their millions in illicit profits’.
“We’re determined to keep communities safe and I urge anyone with information on drug, gun and financial crime to report it to police, because even the smallest piece of information could assist our investigations and help us protect communities.”
Members of public should share information on crime online at www.merseyside.police.uk or by calling police on 101 or. Always call 999 in an emergency.
Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell said: "These results demonstrate the power of a relentless, coordinated approach to tackling serious and organised crime. Through the Merseyside Organised Crime Partnership, Merseyside Police is working hand-in-hand with the National Crime Agency and partners across the UK and beyond to identify, target, prosecute and ultimately put behind bars the individuals who bring misery, violence and exploitation into our communities.
"Behind every arrest and conviction are countless hours of surveillance, intelligence gathering and painstaking investigative work. These successes are only possible because of the dedication of specialist officers and staff, working alongside local policing teams and national partners to dismantle criminal networks from the streets of Merseyside right through to those operating at the highest levels of organised crime.
"Communities also play a vital role in helping bring these criminals to justice. Information provided by residents, businesses and local partners can be the crucial piece of intelligence that helps build a case, protect vulnerable people and take dangerous offenders off our streets.
“I would urge anyone with concerns about drug dealing, weapons or organised crime to continue coming forward, because together we are making Merseyside a hostile environment for criminals and a safer place for everyone."