Crime Gang’s Computer Cover-Up for Cocaine Smuggling Busted
A ruthless organised crime group (OCG) cooked up a fake computer business to hide their massive cocaine imports. The sham company, Clarke Computers and Software Limited, wasn’t just on paper – they leased premises in Widnes, Cheshire, stocked up, and even made fleece jackets with the business name.
Leader Craig Gallagher’s Double Life: Drugs & Guns
Craig Gallagher, 36, the gang’s ringleader and firearms supplier, was finally nabbed thanks to the National Crime Agency. The breakthrough came after the takedown of the encrypted chat platform EncroChat in 2020.
“These men formed a very dangerous and damaging criminal organisation,” said Mike Beigan, NCA operations manager. “They brought in industrial volumes of cocaine that have no doubt contributed to further waves of crime and misery in our communities.”
“Craig Gallagher thought nothing of brokering deals to equip serious criminals with deadly weapons, the sort of weapons that have been used with tragic consequences in recent times.”
Elaborate Drug Moves & High-Tech Hideouts
- The gang used a Renault Twingo with a custom-built hide beneath the front passenger seat to transport Class A drugs.
- During the 2020 lockdown, they avoided police by using a breakdown recovery truck and a window fitting van, complete with cover stories and workwear.
- Gallagher planned frequent smuggling runs, hiding up to 100kg of cocaine in computer shipments from their Widnes industrial unit.
Heavy Sentences After Massive Haul Exposed
Gallagher was jailed for 24 years after admitting to importing at least 100kg of cocaine worth £8 million and brokering firearms sales, including assault rifles and machine pistols. Although he wasn’t caught with guns personally, he negotiated deals for AK47s, AR-15s, Glocks, and more.
Other gang members also caught hefty sentences:
- Christopher Van Maren, 41, jailed 12 years for managing drugs and £1m in cash.
- Marcus Allen, 29, known as ‘The Geek’, got eight years for couriering drugs and hundreds of thousands in cash.
- Wesley Campbell, 39, sentenced to 12 years for drug supply and money laundering.
- Kevin Boyle, the frontman aka Maurice Clarke, got 30 months for setting up the fake business and enabling the gang’s activities.
More Members to Face Justice
Carl Pickering, David Jones, and Liam Reynolds will be sentenced in Liverpool Crown Court on 18 September after pleading guilty to various offences including supplying cocaine and money laundering.
Their daring efforts to stay under the radar included using tradesmen vans and work clothes to disguise dirty cash drops – even during strict lockdown restrictions.
NCA Cracks EncroChat to Bring Gang Down
NCA officers sifted through 40,000 messages from Gallagher’s EncroChat accounts, tracing the gang’s crime empire. Police from Merseyside and Cheshire supported the 2021 arrests.
This takedown highlights how criminals exploit tech and lockdown loopholes to flood UK streets with drugs and guns. But thanks to relentless law enforcement, their reign is over.
